


Tribrid Salvatore

by NicholasFlamelFan



Series: Tribrid Chronicles [1]
Category: The Vampire Diaries (TV)
Genre: Gen, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Jealous Elena Gilbert, Klaus Mikaelson Has A Heart, Kol Mikaelson Lives, Parent Klaus Mikaelson, Protective Damon Salvatore, Protective Elijah Mikaelson
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-29
Updated: 2019-04-20
Packaged: 2019-04-29 21:31:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 29
Words: 61,755
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14481600
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NicholasFlamelFan/pseuds/NicholasFlamelFan
Summary: Zach Salvatore has a niece who got pregnant at seventeen, she has a baby girl that she named Luna, but Luna isn't a normal baby, she finds out when she is a few months old that she needs blood to survive, so she thinks that Luna's dad was just a normal vampire. What will Damon and Stefan do with the knowledge of an orphaned girl? ADOPTED from time-twilight





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

  * For [timetwilight](https://archiveofourown.org/users/timetwilight/gifts).



It was the Monday after the Founder's Day fiasco and Damon was at the Boarding House alone, when the doorbell rang.

Within a minute the vampire had opened the door "Can I help you?" he questioned, frowning at the middle-aged man.

"Ah, I'm looking for a Zach Salvatore. Is he here?" the man inquired with a polite but professional smile.

Damon squinted suspiciously "Zach isn't here. I'm his nephew. Maybe I can help?"

The man sighed "My name is Alexander Jenkins from Jenkins and Sons. I have a letter for Mr. Salvatore from one of my clients. It is important that he gets this immediately."

"My uncle died a while ago," the vampire told the lawyer, looking for a reaction, any reaction.

"That is a problem," Mr. Jenkins muttered under his breath, running a hand through his hair "You said that you were Mr. Salvatore's nephew?"

Damon nodded "Damon Salvatore."

The lawyer hummed in contemplation "Then maybe you can help me. May I come inside? I'd rather not discuss this on the front porch."

The Salvatore was definitely curious now. He had no clue what this could be about. Zach had always been a bit of a loner, so Damon couldn't really think of anyone who would send a letter with a lawyer. The older of the two vampire brothers wasn't what you might call kind but he wasn't completely heartless. The man in front of him looked drawn and desperate.

Damon moved to the side, gesturing for the lawyer to enter. While it didn't make much of a difference whether he invited him in or not, it was a habit by now. The two men entered the living room, making themselves comfortable on the couches.

"So," the vampire started "Why were you looking for Zach? And who's that letter from?"

"One of my clients," Mr. Jenkins repeated "The late Maria Salvatore. As far as I was informed Mr. Salvatore is her uncle. Maria has... unfortunately passed away recently and there are matters to be settled."

Damon raised an eyebrow "Matters?" Then the rest of the statement registered "I wasn't aware that Zach had a niece... that I had a cousin."

"Yes," the lawyer nodded "Maria Salvatore. 21 at the time of her death. She was raised by Mr. Salvatore after her parents died. When she was sixteen, she left for an extended trip... The matter that needs to be settled is the custody of her four-year-old daughter Luna. I believe there are specifics in that letter." He handed the letter to the vampire along with a small rectangle card that had his contact information "I'm afraid that I have an important meeting soon and have to leave. Should you need more information or would like to take Luna in then please call me. I would prefer her to be safe with family rather than to put her with complete strangers."

"Alright," Damon mumbled, somewhat overwhelmed with the situation. There was another living Salvatore out there? A four-year-old orphaned Salvatore "Wait," he called out when Mr. Jenkins was at the front door already "What about the father?"

The lawyer smiled a little at the interest "Only Maria knew who he was. As far as I know, he isn't aware of his daughter."

"Thank you," the vampire nodded "I need to think this over... It's a bit of a huge deal and my younger brother needs to have a say as well."

"Of course," the lawyer tilted his head "I await your decision by Thursday, otherwise I'm afraid that Luna will only be able to stay with me for that long before Social Services come to collect her." One last nod later, he was gone and Damon was alone once more.

He exhaled loudly, falling back onto the couch. His hand blindly tried to grasp one of the pitchers with alcohol. What mess did he get into now? There was no way that he could take care of a child. Especially not a human one... Damon gulped down a few mouthfuls of Bourbon before his gaze fell on the crisp white envelope that was still on the coffee table.

"Oh, fuck it," he groaned, leaning forward to grab it.

_**'Hello Uncle Zach,** _

_**It's been a while, hasn't it? I know that it was entirely my fault but I swear that I had a good reason. No matter, I'm not here to make excuses...** _

_**Uncle Zach, I need your help. If you read this letter then I'm dead and have left someone very important behind. I'm sure you remember Luna?** _

_**The reason I cut contact was because I found out a few things about my baby... When she was two months old something happened. Something I would have never thought possible.** _

_**Luna needs blood to survive, Uncle. I don't know how this is possible but her father was a vampire. You're the only one I trust who knows about the supernatural. If you decided to take care of her there will be several of my journals with her. I wrote down everything you'll need to know about her. Just a few things first. Luna is super fast and heals extremely fast as well. She is a bit sensitive to sunlight but with a little help of sunscreen she's fine.** _

_**Please, Uncle. I beg you to take her in. She's my everything and you did an amazing job with me. Not that I have ever told you that.** _

_**I love you, Zach.** _

_**Your niece Maria.'** _

Damon was gaping at the letter with an open mouth. This was impossible. No, not only impossible but 'Hell will freeze over before this happens' rare.

"She wasn't lying though," the vampire told himself. She sounded desperate and not only a bit panicked. The thought of something happening to her child after her death must be hard to deal with.

A few hours later, Stefan found his older brother still in the living room, reading the letter over and over again "Damon?"

"Stefan," the older of the two nodded "Something happened and I think that you need to know..."

Stefan frowned, sitting down across from Damon "Tell me."

"Did you know that Zach had a niece? Like full-blooded human niece?"

"What?" the broody vampire gasped "How do you know?"

Damon sighed "So you didn't know either... Here." He handed over the letter "Read this. Apparently, this Maria had a child who is an orphan now. The lawyer came over this morning and told me that he wants her to stay with family."

"Damon, we can't take in a child. Not when we're in this whole supernatural mess," Stefan argued, ignoring the letter for now.

The older Salvatore nodded "That's what I thought as well. Until I read that letter. Stefan, we have to take her in. I'm not sure how or why but..." He shook his head "Read the letter. I'll be up in my room."

Damon's thoughts were on the little girl. Maybe they should take her in... It would certainly be easier to feed her blood. To be around people who were aware of who you were was so much better. Also, he didn't know and honestly didn't want to know what would happen if Luna didn't get blood on a regular basis. If it was anything like what happened to fully fledged vampires then he really didn't want the little girl to experience something like that.


	2. Luna Meets Her Family

Two days later, on Wednesday the day had come. After lots and lots of discussions between the brothers – well, mainly Stefan though – they had decided to take in little Luna. They were her family after all and if no one knew who her father was then that was the least they could do. Damon felt like he owed it to Zach. Sure, he didn't like his nephew much but he wouldn't have wanted to completely rid a child of her family with killing him.

The doorbell rang just before Stefan was going to leave to visit Elena "Hello," Mr. Jenkins greeted the two vampires with a smile. Holding the lawyer's hand was one of the cutest girls they had ever seen. Her eyes were a startling shade of blue, similar to Damon's and her hair a flowing honey blonde.

"Mr. Jenkins," Damon greeted with a nod "This is my younger brother Stefan."

"Hello," the younger of the two Salvatores smiled, holding out his hand "It's nice to meet you." Then he turned to look at the little girl "You must be Luna." The four-year-old blushed shyly, looking down at her feet.

"Now, since you agreed to take her in I brought along most of the things she wanted to bring. There's also some stuff left from her mother that was supposed to go to Mr. Salvatore…" Mr. Jenkins trailed off "How about I'll go and get it and then I need to leave." He walked off with Stefan following him to the car. Together they quickly unloaded the lawyer's car while Luna was still standing where the man left her.

Damon studied her curiously, trying to see if there was anything different about his little niece. Yes, the brothers decided that it would make things easier to declare Luna their niece. Since her mother, Maria grew up in this town, they would just tell people the truth about her mother. It was the easiest thing to do "Hello, little one. I'm Damon."

"Hi," she breathed, smiling nervously at the tall man. Luna wasn't sure what to make of the two of them. Her mother told her stories about her Uncle Zach and from what she could remember there were also mentions of a pair of brothers. They were different… like her.

As soon as Mr. Jenkins left the three Salvatores were enveloped in an awkward silence until Stefan cleared his throat "So, how about we show you your room?" Luna nodded, finally stepping through the doorway, taking the younger brother's outstretched hand.

"You show her the room and I'll bring up her stuff," Damon proposed "We can talk about the rest later." As he walked past her, he ruffled the little girl's hair. It was still a bit awkward between them all since the two vampires really didn't have a lot of experience with small children but they would make it work. Somehow they would be able to make this work.

Stefan lead Luna upstairs, pointing out rooms as they walked past "This is my room over there. Damon's is here and yours is the one here. We didn't know what you liked, so… you can tell us and we'll change it to whatever you want."

The room was surprisingly big and the walls a very light shade of blue "I like it," Luna grinned excitedly, her previous shyness almost forgotten when she threw herself at him "Thank you."

"I'm glad," the teenage vampire smiled down at the mop of her hair, wrapping his arms around her tiny body. Even though he had been a bit uncomfortable with the idea of having her here, it was starting quite well. Sure, she had only been here for half an hour at most but Stefan could already see her getting spoiled by both him and Damon. Luna was simply too cute not to have them wrapped around her little finger.

"Is that everything you have" Damon questioned, putting down the two small boxes he was carrying.

Luna peeked up at him "My momma didn't have much money. I don't need more."

"Maria, right?"

The girl nodded lightly "Momma was the bestest in the world," she smiled lightly, tears gathering in her eyes.

"Oh, little one," Stefan murmured, kneeling down in front of their niece "I know that you must miss your mother a lot. Hey, how about we show you around some more." He had no idea what to say to the girl to stop her from crying, so he just tried to distract her.

Luna giggled lightly "Okay." She slipped her hand into his again and they walked back downstairs. The thing that Luna loved the most about the Boarding House was the garden. As soon as they were out of the door, she was already running over the grass.

"How is she so happy after what happened?" Stefan murmured to his older brother quietly.

Damon shrugged "I have no idea. But she's kinda cute though."

"Is the big bad vampire really walking around calling a little girl cute?" the younger brother teased "I know what you're talking about. Her eyes are almost the same as yours… her hair though…"

"She's going to be a heartbreaker in the future," Damon grinned, watching Luna run around happily.


	3. 2x01 The Return

On the Saturday after she arrived, Luna was woken up by Damon shaking her "Come on, Luna. You have to get up."

"Dami," the sleepy voice of the girl whined lightly.

The older vampire had to suppress the laughter at her glare. It made her look like a kitten "None of that now. Up you get."

Luna grumbled but sat up, rubbing her eyes "Where we going?"

"The mayor got hurt badly and the funeral is today," Damon explained "You do have a dress for the occasion, right?"

"Yes," she nodded "Mommy bought me one."

"Alright, then I'll leave you to get dressed. Come down when you're done. If you need help, then just call."

"'Kay," the little girl nodded, scrambling from her bed and over to the closet. While she didn't necessarily have many clothes, her mother had gotten her everything she needed. Sometimes even if the money was tight.

The dress she put on was a beautiful black fabric with a white collar. As soon as Luna was done, she sped down the stairs and was behind Damon in a blink. She loved using her vampire speed. It was fun to feel the wind and see everything flying past you.

"That was fast," the older Salvatore smirked, turning around to face her "Listen, Luna. Since we are going to introduce you to several people today, I don't want you to use your speed or anything else in front of them."

She bit her lip in concentration "No finding out what I am?"

"Exactly," Damon nodded "I'm really sorry but I think it's safer for you."

"I trust you, Dami," she smiled sweetly, tugging at his arm.

Damon withheld a grin and scooped her up into his arms. Luna seemed to enjoy getting carried by either him or his brother. It was cute if he was honest with himself "Let's go then..." He grabbed his jacket and keys on the way out, depositing the four-year-old in the backseat of his car.

The drive to the Lockwood Mansion passed relatively quickly and as soon as Damon was out of the car, he picked up his niece again.

"Damon," Carol greeted when the two Salvatores entered "And who is this little one?"

"This is Luna. She's Maria's daughter, you know Maria, right? She did grow up with Zach," the vampire explained.

The new mayor blinked in surprise "Maria had a child? Why is she with you?"

"Mommy got hurt," Luna piped up, raising her face from her Dami's shoulder. Neither of them were aware when she had started to call him that... It was from one minute to another once Luna had gotten more comfortable with the both of them. Damon was now Dami while she called Stefan Steffi… Needless to say, neither one cared one bit.

A short moment of silence followed the little girl's proclamation before Carol shook her head and turned to Liz Forbes "I want to know exactly who's responsible for killing my husband."

"I'm looking into it," Liz told her quietly, throwing nervous and confused glances towards Luna "But you have to be straight with me. Is there any reason Richard was affected by the vampire device?"

Carol glared "What are you implying? That he was one of them?"

"No, no," Damon cut in quickly, adjusting his grip on his little niece. Luna was obviously listening to the conversation, the only thing he didn't know was how much of it she actually understood "No one's implying that."

"Your deputy screwed up," Carol told the Sheriff blankly "Plain and simple which makes you responsible."

Damon rolled his eyes "Carol," he warned.

"Your husband is the one who helped John Gilbert execute his idiot plan in the first place," Liz shot back, not willing to take the blame that was being heaped on her.

"Liz…"

Carol sighed in frustration "Someone got my husband killed."

Damon stepped between them now "We're all on edge here. You've suffered a great loss. The whole town has. We have to stick together, okay? Trust each other, we'll get through this."

The conversation slowly died off and Carol soon left when a big muscular guy arrived. The older Salvatore set his niece down onto her feet, keeping a hold on her hand though "Who's the guy with Carol?" he questioned Liz.

"It's the mayor's younger brother, Mason Lockwood," she answered, glancing at the man.

Damon frowned "Is he on the council? Like John Gilbert was when he rolled in?"

"He's nothing like John," the Sheriff smiled "For one, he's not an ass. He's not a believer either. He wants nothing to do with the council. He's too preoccupied finding the perfect wave."

"Thanks," the vampire nodded, adding a quick "See you" when Liz excused herself.

After a few minutes of the vampire staring at Mason Lockwood, he felt a tug on his arm "Dami… I want to go home." She was staring at the newly arrived man fearfully.

"Luna?" Damon knelt down, turning Luna to face him "What's wrong?"

The four-year-old shook her head "I wanna go home." To the vampire's horror, tears were filling her eyes. She hadn't cried, not even when she fell from one of the trees in the garden two days ago… What was making her act this way now?

"Did you know the Gilbert device affected Tyler Lockwood?" a judgy voice spoke up from behind the Salvatore duo.

Damon glared up at Bonnie in annoyance "Well, I know it took the mayor down. If you'll excuse me now. I'm a bit busy right now." He picked the four-year-old back up and headed for the door "I need to find my brother."

Before he could leave though, he was stopped by the witch "Don't you want to know why?"

The vampire sighed "Yes Bonnie, I would love to know why a non-vampire was tortured by the vampire torture device that you let John Gilbert use against us. Speaking of your guilt, how's Caroline?"

"She's much better," Bonnie replied defensively, getting annoyed when Damon tried to step past her again "I'm not done."

"Yes," the older Salvatore glared "You are. I don't care who you are right now, Bonnie. Get out of my way…"

The Bennett sneered "Or what? I know what you are Damon, you might have Elena and the Sheriff and everybody else fooled but not me. One wrong move and I'm gonna take you out." She looked at Damon until the vampire in question was holding his head in pain. His grip on the girl loosened a bit, allowing her to slide to the floor "Oh, I'm so sorry. Did I do that?" The prejudiced witch walked out to the front porch without a backward glance. She didn't care that she almost hurt the girl Damon had been holding, the only thing she was thinking about was that she caused the vampire at least a bit of pain.

As soon as she was gone, Damon scooped Luna up again, taking her over to a quiet corner "Are you alright? She didn't hurt you, did she?"

"No, Dami," Luna assured quietly, stretching her hand up to touch his temple "Hurt?"

He smiled down at the sweet girl "No, little one. I'm fine." Damon looked around for a moment "Do you want to tell me why you wanted to go home all of a sudden?"

The slip of a Hybrid shook her head "No."

"Luna, you have to tell me what's going on," he encouraged her gently.

"The man," she whispered "He feels weird…"

Damon frowned "You mean Mason Lockwood?"

His niece nodded "Feels like… like… I don't know. I wanna go, Dami."

"In a little bit, okay? We have to find Stefan first… He has to be around here somewhere," the older of the two murmured "Do you want to walk?"

"Yes," Luna smiled, bouncing along next to him, her earlier apprehension seemingly forgotten again. That happened a lot over the last few days. Her mood changed abnormally fast and while she was usually pretty happy, there were moments of fear, anger and sadness mixed in. It wasn't unexpected after all Luna did only just lose her mother but she was still a dream to take care of.

It didn't take long until the next person approached the unlikely pair "Hey," a brown-haired girl smiled at Damon. For some reason, it almost seemed like everyone was ignoring Luna "How are you doing?"

"Great, Elena," Damon muttered sarcastically "Walking on sunshine, thanks for asking."

"Damon," Elena warned "Wait… Who is the kid?"

The vampire smirked "Oh, you mean Luna? She's Stefan and my niece. Why do you ask?"

"You don't have a niece," she argued "Who did you steal her from?"

"You're kidding, right?" Damon gaped "She really is our niece and if you don't believe me then ask Stefan." He looked around, hoping to see his brother somewhere "Speaking of my brother. Do you know where he went?"

Elena shook her head "No, I haven't seen him. Damon, we need to talk about what happened."

"We don't need to do anything," he denied, pulling Luna along with him to the front door "If you see Stefan, tell him I went home."

A few hours later, Damon walked into the living room of the Boarding House where Luna was trying to solve a puzzle on the floor. Her tongue was poking out cutely as she tried to match the letters into words. The vampire stopped to pour himself a drink before he froze "Very brave of you to come here."

Luna looked up at the woman who was now sitting on the couch. She smelt like vampire, not like the other one who looked the same way "I wanted to say goodbye."

"Leaving so soon?" Damon mocked.

Katherine shrugged "I know where I'm not wanted. Cute kid, by the way. She's surprisingly smart… Where did you get her from? She seems a bit familiar actually."

"She's family," the older Salvatore murmured "And you will leave her alone."

"Alright, alright," she smirked, speeding in front of him "What, no goodbye kiss?"

Damon scoffed "Why don't I kill you instead? What are you doing here?"

"Nostalgia," she shrugged "Curiosity, etcetera. Come on. Kiss me. Or kill me. Which will it be, Damon? We both know that you're only capable of one." She inched closer to his lips, while he turned to walk away. There was no way, he was going to do any of the two in front of the four-year-old nearby. Before he could get away though, Katherine was on top of him, trailing a hand down his chest "My sweet, innocent Damon." He turned them over, now lying on top of her. After seconds of hesitation, he kissed her "That's more like it."

"Okay, wait, a brief pause," Damon panted, pushing Katherine away from him "I have a question. Answer it and it's back to fireworks and rockets red glare. Answer it right and I'll forget the last one hundred and forty-five years that I've spent missing you. I'll forget how much I loved you, I'll forget everything and we can start over. This could be our defining moment because we have the time. That's the beauty of eternity." The younger of the two vampires gently caressed her face "I just need the truth, for once."

"Stop," she held up her hand "I already know your question and its answer. The truth is… I've never loved you. It was always Stefan." She took his hands off her face and left, only glancing at Luna who had been watching them, a disgusted look on her face.

When the older vampire was gone, the girl scrambled over to her Dami and climbed onto his lap "Are you okay, Dami?"

He sighed deeply, wrapping his arms around Luna's shoulders "I will be, I think. Come on, it's already late. Let's get you to bed."


	4. 2x02 Brave New World

Damon poured himself a glass of blood after he gave another one to Luna who was sitting on the couch, watching him "Care for one?" the older brother questioned, looking over at Stefan who just arrived.

"No, thank you," Stefan sighed, ruffling the four-year-old's hair in greeting "I'm not hungry. I just ate."

Damon smirked "Are you worried that one day, all the forest animals are gonna band together and fight back? I mean, surely they talk."

Luna's eyes widened "Do you eat Bambi, Steffi?"

"What?" Stefan gaped, glaring at his older brother when he started laughing "Damon!"

The older vampire held up his hands, still chuckling "I didn't do anything. I swear…"

Stefan tickled Luna's tummy lightly, careful of the glass of blood she was still clutching "Imp," he scolded playfully, making the girl giggle "You know, Damon, I'm just happy that's a blood bag and not a sorority girl supplying your dinner."

"I'll have you know that I haven't had anyone over since we took Luna in," Damon told his brother "I like this, by the way. You walking on eggshells around me because you think I'm gonna explode. Very suspenseful. Is Elena worried too? I bet I'm your every conversation." The little girl squirmed out of Stefan's grip, getting bored with the conversation. She ran upstairs, looking through her toys to find something to do.

A few hours later, Luna was safe in Stefan's arms as he walked through the carnival that was going on at the high school tonight. Usually, they wouldn't have brought her but Damon insisted that it was alright for the four-year-old to be out past her bedtime at least once. Especially since she had only been in town twice since she came to live with them.

"You're lurking," Stefan commented, coming up behind Damon who was staring at he Lockwood boy.

Damon barely looked back "I'm observing."

"More like obsessing," Stefan snorted, setting Luna down onto her feet, keeping a hold of her hand.

At that moment, Tyler won the arm wrestling match "He's got strength," the older Salvatore pointed out.

Stefan rolled his eyes "He's a triple letter varsity athlete, of course, he has strength. You're reaching."

"I bet I can take you." The three Salvatore's heard from their place nearby.

"Enter the uncle," Damon smirked.

Stefan sighed, looking down at Luna with a frown "Hey, what's up?" The little girl had hidden behind her uncle as soon as she caught sight of the mysterious man "Luna?"

"She was acting this way at the wake as well," Damon murmured, kneeling down in front of his niece "Look at me, little moon. Come on. You have to tell us what's wrong… Can you do that?"

Tears were filling Luna's eyes and she shook her head harshly. She couldn't tell. She promised her Mommy that she'd never tell anyone what that man did to both of them. It wasn't the same one… But they smelt alike.

"Okay," Tyler panted breathlessly, standing up from the table "He's the champ, who wants to go next?"

Damon stood up, taking Luna up with him, settling her on his hip "Stefan wants to go."

The younger brother glared at the black-haired Salvatore "Yeah, sure, I'll… give it a shot." He walked over to Mason and they started wrestling, both putting in hard pressure. After several minutes, Mason beat him easily and Stefan rejoined his brother and niece.

"You didn't put in any effort at all," Damon hissed.

Stefan blinked in shock "Yeah, actually I did."

"Come with me." The three of them went out into the hallway "Is he…?"

"No, no," the younger brother shook his head "It wasn't that kind of strength but it was more than human if that makes any sense."

Damon exhaled sharply "What is up with that family? They're not vampires, what the hell are they?"

Stefan's lips twitched "Ooh, ah, maybe they're, um, ninja turtles. What do you think, Luna?" The girl was shaking in Damon's arms, looking like she was somewhere else entirely "Damn it. What is wrong with her?"

"I don't know, Stefan. I really don't… But this only started once she saw Mason… Do you think…?"

"I have no idea," Stefan shrugged "Hey, what about zombies or werewolves?"

As soon as the last word left his mouth, their little niece started struggling "No," she whispered in fear "Please… No. Let me go…" Her voice got louder the more she pleaded and tears were running down her cheeks freely now.

"Shh," Damon hushed, trying to calm his niece down. When that didn't work, he handed her over to Stefan "Here. I'll be right back."

"What are you doing? Damon?" the younger brother called out, bouncing Luna up and down slightly while Damon vanished "It's alright, Luna. Please calm down?" The cries quieted down somewhat but the four-year-old's tears didn't stop. Instead, they became what every parent dreaded. Silent tears were so much worse than the loud cries that kids gave when they wanted attention. No, these meant that Luna just couldn't stop crying and it made Stefan feel powerless. It didn't help that he could hear Damon compelling someone to make Tyler angry. In fact, it was the last thing they needed right now.

A few minutes later, the oldest Salvatore returned, taking Luna again "I'm going to take her home. Maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all."

"I think you're right," Stefan sighed, running a hand through his hair "I'm going to fix that situation you just started. You do realize that someone is going to get hurt, right?"

"No," Damon shook his head "Someone is going to get mad, as in rage."

Stefan raised an eyebrow "What's that going to accomplish?"

"That Tyler kid is incapable of walking away from a fight. Let's see who intervenes. Maybe it's the ambiguous, supernatural mystery uncle." His younger brother looked ready to hit him but vanished from sight instead. Damon turned with the crying girl on his hip and walked down the hallway when he sensed something behind them. He stopped and turned around, ready to protect his niece if he needed to. The older Salvatore blinked in surprise at the blonde cheerleader at the other end of the hallway "Hey Blondie, they let you out?"

"I remember," she murmured, glaring at the dark-haired man.

The older vampire tilted his head "What do you remember?"

"I remember how you manipulated me, you pushed me around, abused me, erased my memories, fed on me."

"You're crazy," Damon snorted, his mind going a mile a minute. How did she know… The only reason she might remember was if she was turning into a vampire but that was impossible, right?

Caroline smirked, stalking closer to the older man "Memories have been coming back, in pieces."

"You can't remember," Damon shook his head in denial, shielding Luna with his body "It's impossible, I mean unless you're becoming a…"

The blonde smiled, eyes focussed on Damon and Damon only "I have a message from Katherine, she said 'Game on'."

"Wait…" She pushed him with strength, making him fly backward, sliding on the floor. He was up in a second, checking over Luna who landed on the floor as well "Shit. Luna, are you alright? Come on, little one."

Caroline gasped, taking a step closer "Oh my God. I – I didn't see her. I'm sorry." Where did the little girl come from anyway? She hadn't been with Damon before… "Who is she?"

"Her name is Luna," the older vampire sighed, trying to calm down the little Hybrid "Come on, Luna… Please stop crying. You're going to make yourself sick."

In a second, the blonde was kneeling next to the cute little girl "Aren't you a pretty one?" she cooed, making Luna look up at her "Did I hurt you, baby?"

Luna shook her head "No," she sniffed.

"Will you tell me about it?" Caroline smiled, lifting Luna onto her lap gently. For some reason, she didn't feel the need to drink her blood. Not like she did with everyone else anyway.

"I'm not allowed," the four-year-old whispered, burying her face in the nice girl's shirt. She was different from all of the people she met in this town. For one, the girl didn't act like she was better than Dami. Sure, she didn't like him but she wasn't patronizing about it like the other two.

Caroline smoothed down Luna's hair "That's alright. If you can't talk about it, you don't have to. Just know that you can always come to me, okay?" The cheerleader waited until the child nodded "Now, how about you stop crying? I mean, the tears are ruining your pretty face. Do you want that?"

Luna giggled, shaking her head. Her tears were almost forgotten now. Sure, she was still scared of the bad man from two years ago but he couldn't hurt her anymore. Who said that the other wolf would? Maybe she could give him a chance…

"How did you do that?" Damon mused, staring at both girls with a hint of awe.

Caroline smirked up at him "You just have to know what to say. How long has she stayed with you?"

"Almost a week now," he replied, running a hand through his hair.

"I can tell," she snorted "I'm still mad at you, by the way."

Damon nodded "Sure. So, you are a vampire now… Because of Katherine." He looked down at his niece who was falling asleep on the blonde Barbie vampire "I think it's time to take her home now… Thank you, Blondie."

"How much did that hurt?" she questioned curiously, surrendering the cute girl to the older vampire.

"You have no idea," the Salvatore smirked "I'll be back and then we're going to talk, alright?"

Caroline studied the older man for a few seconds "Alright. But only because I have no idea what the hell is happening."

Damon nodded sharply, turning around to speed back to the Boarding House. Luna had completely fallen asleep by now, her eyes still red and puffy "What am I going to do with you?" he whispered to the sleeping girl.

Back in her room, he quickly changed her into a nightdress and tucked her into the bed that was way too big for the tiny Hybrid. So far they didn't have any problems with the fact that Luna was part vampire. Apart from needing to drink a bit of blood every now and then and the typical characteristics of a vampire, there was nothing different than raising a normal child. The vampire made a mental note to take Luna shopping sometime next week. Maybe he could even rope Jenna into it, no matter how much the woman disliked him. He didn't have any idea what a girl Luna's age might need, so he definitely needed some help. And if Jenna didn't want to, then he would have to 'ask' a woman at the shops… One way or another, he would definitely be able to do this.


	5. 2x03 Bad Moon Rising

"Thanks for coming, Ric," Damon nodded, waving the teacher into the house, Luna on his hip. She was still a bit sleepy, so her head was resting on the vampire's shoulder and her blue eyes were mostly closed "Can I get you something to drink? Coffee, bourbon? Bourbon in your coffee?"

"Elena mentioned you needed my help?" he replied, smiling at the little girl. She not only had the two Salvatores wrapped around her little finger, Caroline and himself were also well on their way of falling under her charms. For some reason, Luna had this aura around her. She drew in people and made them want to protect her. It also helped that she was easily the cutest child he had seen in a while.

"Yeah," Stefan cut in, wrapping his arm around Elena "We were hoping you could shed some light on the Lockwood family."

Alaric raised an eyebrow "Now, why would I know anything about the Lockwoods?"

"Well, you wouldn't," Damon murmured, sitting down on the couch, his niece settled on his lap "But your dead, not-dead vampire wife might."

"Isobel's research from when you guys were at Duke together," Elena elaborated. Luna looked like she was about to say something but changed her mind when Elena glared at her. The Doppelgänger wasn't sure what to think about the little girl that both Damon and Stefan seemed so smitten with. She didn't like the fact that they were paying more attention to Luna than to her.

"You said that she had spent years researching this town," Stefan stated.

Alaric shrugged "Isobel's research here in Mystic Falls rooted in folklore and legends but at the time I thought much of which was fiction."

"Like that amazing vampire story," Damon smirked, watching Luna playing some kind of game with his fingers, giggling under her breath.

Elena tilted her head "Aside from vampires, what else?"

"The lycanthrope."

"Wait, like werewolves?" the human girl snorted.

Luna immediately reacted, huddling closer to her uncle "No. Please… I'll be good."

"Shh, Luna. It's okay," Damon soothed, running his hands up and down the little girl's back. He looked up at his brother "She always reacts that way once we mention that."

"I don't know," Stefan shrugged, sitting down next to his brother and the distraught four-year-old "Luna, look at me. Do you know anything? Anything at all?"

Her tear-filled eyes locked with Stefan's brown ones "No. No… I – I don't know anything," she lied, stuttering her way through. It was obvious to everyone that she wasn't telling the truth but no one called her out on it.

"Hm," Damon hummed "I've been on this planet one hundred and sixty some odd years, never came across one. If werewolves exist, where the hell are they?"

"Why do you suspect the Lockwoods?" Alaric tilted his head.

Damon looked up "Because vervain didn't affect the mayor at the Founders' Day but the Gilbert device did and it affected his son, Tyler."

"And at the school carnival his uncle, Mason exhibited inhuman behaviours when he fought with one of the carnival's workers," Stefan added "It suggests it's some sort of a supernatural entity."

"We were hoping that Isobel's research could help us figure it out what it is," Elena spoke up, walking closer to the History teacher.

Alaric sighed "Well, all her things are still at Duke. I mean, her office is still there. She's technically still missing."

"So we can get access to it?" Damon probed "Ric, we need to know what we are dealing with. If this wolfman thing is true, I've seen enough movies to know it's not good. It means Mason Lockwood is a real-life Lon Chaney and that little Tyler punk may just very well be Lon Chaney junior, which mean Bela Lugosi, meaning me, is totally screwed."

Later, when Stefan and Elena were gone, packing for the trip, Damon and Alaric were talking about the visit to Duke some more.

"Can I come?" Luna piped up, looking from Damon to Alaric and back again. When it looked like they were going to say no, she put on a pout, looking for all intents and purposes like a little puppy.

Damon sighed in defeat "Sure. Why not. You don't mind, do you, Ric?"

"Of course not," the amateur hunter grinned, scooping up the girl from Damon's lap "You're way too nice to be stuck with Damon, you know?" He tapped Luna's nose, making her giggle.

"Hey," the vampire pouted, smiling at the scene. He was glad that his friend got along with his niece. Especially, since there some of his friends like Elena and Bonnie who didn't seem to approve of Luna being here "I resent that."

"Let's go," Alaric sighed, carrying Luna out to his car "Do you have a car seat for her?"

Damon blinked for a moment "Oh, yeah. Sorry. Hold on." A second later, the vampire was installing the seat in the back behind the driver "There."

"Thanks," the teacher nodded, putting the little girl down. He buckled her in and walked around the car to the passenger side. He doubted that Damon would let him drive even though it was his car…

At the Gilbert's house, Alaric walked up to the front door, leaving Luna and Damon behind to wait for Elena.

"Are you sure you want to come?" Damon questioned, turning around.

His niece nodded quietly "Don't want to be alone."

"You wouldn't be," he argued "We won't leave you alone. And Stefan is staying here."

"No. Wanna stay with you," Luna whined, curling up into a small ball.

After ten minutes, Damon honked, getting out of the car for a moment. He left his door open, so he would hear the four-year-old if she said anything "Sorry you can't come too, Stef."

"Call me if you need anything," his younger brother said, waving at Luna through the window.

Damon smirked "Oh, I'll take really good care of Elena." Elena grabbed Stefan's neck and kissed him deeply. Apparently, she was trying to make Damon jealous "Okay, time to go." He swung back down into the car. The Doppelgänger got into the backseat, trying to ignore the little girl who seemed to be half-asleep already, her thumb firmly in her mouth. Half an hour into the drive, Damon looked into the rear-view mirror, smiling at Luna before he glanced over at Elena "How are you doing back there? You know, this whole pretending to hate me thing is getting a little silly."

"I don't think she's pretending," Alaric pointed out "You did kill her brother."

"There's a huge asterisk next to that statement. He came back to life," the vampire dismissed.

Elena glared at him "Yeah, thanks to a ring that you didn't know he was wearing."

"Why are you so sure I didn't know?"

"Did you?" the teenage girl demanded.

Damon sighed sharply "Yes."

"You're lying," she sneered.

"Elena, I saw the ring. It's a big tacky thing. Hard to miss."

Another hour later, the four of them arrived at the university. Before Damon could go back and wake up Luna, Alaric already beat him to the punch. He really seemed to step it up, not that the vampire minded. If this was how the hunter could deal with being back in the place his wife disappeared in, then who was he to deny him?

"So Isobel was officially employed by the anthropology department given that most paranormal phenomenon is rooted in folklore," Alaric explained, rearranging Luna to settle her on his hip more comfortably. He lead the other three into an office and cleared his throat "Excuse me, hi. I'm Alaric Saltzman, I called earlier."

"Yes, of course," the young woman nodded, expression clearing up "I'm Vanessa Monroe, research assistant, comparative folklore." She blinked at Elena "Uh, let me just grab Isobel's keys."

Alaric noticed her weird look "These are my friends Elena, Damon and Luna. I hope this isn't too much of an imposition."

"Oh please," Vanessa waved off "Isobel's office is right through there. Isobel was one of my first professors. I'm a grad student. She was brilliant and one of the reasons I went into folklore. Uh, I have to ask – has there been any news?"

"No," the teacher sighed "I'm afraid not."

The woman nodded, disappointed "It's this way." She opened the door to Isobel's office, the others following behind "I'll grab the light, feel free to look around. It's fascinating, isn't it?" She left the four others there.

Alaric set Luna down on his former wife's desk, helping the others look around. Damon blinked at the doorway "Where did she go?"

As soon as he said that, Vanessa returned with a crossbow in her hands. She shot an arrow at Elena but Damon got there just in time to protect his brother's girl. The arrow hit him in the back and he fell to the floor, grunting in pain. Alaric rushed over to the woman, shoving her against the wall. Luna slid from the desk and scrambled to her uncle, tugging at his hair. Tears were running down her cheeks silently as she huddled closer to his hunched form.

"I'm alright, little moon," he murmured, pressing a kiss into her hair "I promise." Damon looked down at her and thought he could see her eyes changing for a moment before they returned to normal "Are you hungry?"

Luna sniffled and looked up "No," she whispered, hiding her face in his chest again.

The vampire turned his head to stare at Elena "I need you to pull the arrow out. I can't reach it. Especially not with Luna here. Just please, pull the damn thing out. It hurts."

Elena hesitated, reaching out to touch the piece of wood before pulling her hand back. She repeated that acting a few times before she finally removed the arrow.

As soon as it was out, Damon stood up, tugging his niece behind him "That bitch is dead," he snarled, stalking closer to Vanessa.

"You're not going to kill her," Elena challenged.

"Watch me," Damon smirked.

The Doppelgänger tugged at his arms, shoving Luna to the side "You touch her and I swear I will never speak to you again."

"What makes you think that has any power over me? Because I took an arrow in the back for you? You're severely overestimating yourself. And if you continue to treat Luna that way, I can't see Stefan being too happy with you," Damon pointed out.

"Right," Elena grimaced "I forgot I was speaking to a psychotic mind who snaps and kills people impulsively. Fine, go ahead, do whatever you want." She ignored the second part of his comment. There was no way that Stefan would leave her just because of that girl. She wasn't even treating her that badly. Just ignoring her…

Damon squinted at the girl he fell in love with "You're trying to manipulate me."

"If by 'manipulate' you mean 'tell the truth' okay, guilty." Elena looked at him and left to join Alaric and the woman who tried to shoot her with an arrow.

"I don't like her," Luna muttered, attaching herself to her Dami's leg. He sighed and picked her up. They probably should stop indulging her that much but it was just so damn comforting to have someone to cuddle with inconspicuously.

Damon leaned his head down to touch their foreheads together "I don't particularly like her either at the moment. Come on, let's get back to researching. It'll be fun." His lips twitched at the deadpan look he got in return "Okay, I'll get back to research. Do you want to play on my phone?"

"Can I?" she questioned, bouncing up and down. Her momma never allowed her to play with her phone much. Only if she needed to keep Luna busy in public and even then she would restrict the time, claiming that she didn't want her daughter to get addicted to technology before she was a teenager.

"Of course. Here you go," he replied, handing his phone over. Damon set his niece down onto Isobel's desk again and left to join the others. He could still keep an eye on her from where he was standing, so it was alright. Right now, Luna was completely immersed in the phone, playing some random game or another. If Damon had to guess, he would say that she probably didn't even notice what was going on around her. Ah, to be a child again…

An hour later, he grabbed his phone back, not wanting to go overboard with the electronics. They had looked through most of the stuff but so far there was nothing they didn't already know "Any luck?" he asked the other three, ruffling Luna's hair when she pouted up at him "Sorry, little one."

"There's nothing in here about Katherine that we don't already know," Elena murmured, shaking her head.

"Ah, man, you know, it's a bummer we're not friends anymore because I could tell you what I know," Damon pouted, not looking nearly as cute as the four-year-old next to him.

Elena rolled her eyes "Now who's manipulating who?"

Alaric snapped his fingers, getting the others' attention "Hey guys, check this out."

"There's no record of werewolf mythology in Mystic Falls," Vanessa spoke up "But here are some records of some of the lesser known legends. Everything from Scandinavian skin-walkers to the Maréchal de Retz." She gave Damon the book with drawings "Tonartsliitsii Metslii, which roughly translates into the 'curse of the sun and the moon'."

"It's Native American," Alaric added.

Vanessa tilted her head "Aztec. It explains one origin of the werewolf curse traced through Virginia. The short story… 600 years ago, the Aztecs were plagued by werewolves and vampires. They terrorized the countryside, made farming and hunting impossible until an Aztec shaman cursed them, making vampires slaves to the sun and werewolves servants of the moon. As a result, vampires could only prowl at night and werewolves could only turn on a full moon. When the full moon crests in the sky, whoever is unlucky enough to fall under the werewolf curse turns into a wolf."

Damon frowned "Can they control the transformation?"

"If it were a choice, it wouldn't be called a curse," the woman deadpanned "Werewolves will attack humans but instinct and centuries of rivalry have hardwired them to hunt their prey of choice… vampires."

"Well, if werewolves were hunting vampires, I would know about it," Damon pointed out.

"Not if there aren't that many werewolves left alive," Vanessa contradicted "Hundreds of years ago, vampires hunted them almost to extinction."

Elena looked appalled at that "Why would they do that?"

Vanessa rolled her eyes at the Doppelgänger "To protect themselves. Legend has it that a werewolf bite is fatal to vampires."

Alaric, Elena and Damon looked at each other in concern "Oh..." Damon mumbled.

Luna slid down from the desk again and tugged at Alaric's hand "Steffi?"

"Stefan should be fine, little one," he murmured, resting his hand on top of her head. His mind was whirling, though. What if a vampire got bitten by a werewolf? Was there a cure and what exactly would happen to them? Alaric looked down when he heard an audible yawn "Are you tired?" The four-year-old nodded her head, leaning against the hunter's leg. He let out a small sigh and scooped her up again "We shouldn't take that much longer."

Meanwhile, Elena was looking through another box "Hey, have you done any research on Doppelgängers?"

"Well, the word means a lot of different things to different cultures but typically a doppelgänger is a living, breathing double of oneself," Vanessa explained without looking at her.

"Did Isobel have anything that explained the link between me and Katherine?" she asked.

The other woman sighed in frustration "That's all she had on Katherine, unfortunately, but I can tell you that Doppelgängers usually torment the people they look like, trying to undo their lives. It's not exactly uplifting."

Alaric leaned back against his ex-wife's desk, watching the tiny girl in his arms falling asleep slowly. He appreciated Damon's trust when it came to her. It really helped to have a comfort. There were so many memories here for him that he'd rather forget. Isobel was his life once upon a time and he certainly didn't want to remember everything from before. This was the reason why he left to Mystic Falls in the first place. Well, that and a thousand other reasons…

"Ric?" Damon's voice startled him out of his thoughts "We're leaving now."

"Oh, right."

The vampire squeezed his shoulder in comfort "We'll give you a moment." He slipped his hands under Luna's arms and cradled her against his chest "Elena and I'll be out by the car."

"Thank you, Damon," he murmured, running a hand over his face when he was left alone.

Damon walked out of the university and back to where they had parked the car with Elena in tow. He unlocked the car and carefully strapped the sleeping four-year-old into her car seat. The older Salvatore really couldn't blame Luna for falling asleep. This trip must have been extremely boring for her but it was better than to leave her with Stefan. Damon was sure that his brother would have dragged her around town. There was always something happening these days. He kissed Luna's forehead and quietly shut the door.


	6. 2x04 Memory Lane

The next day, after their shopping trip, Damon brought Luna to the Grill to pick up a cake he ordered for Jenna's barbecue. He thought that maybe he should start to bring her outside more often. Field trips not included. He set his niece at one table, handing her a book they bought earlier. The vampire wasn't sure if he was surprised that she could read – difficult as it was for her. Her mother must have put some effort into teaching her. Maria was a good mother from what he could tell and he was sad that he never got to meet her.

"I'll be right back, little moon," Damon murmured, keeping his eyes on the Doppelgänger who was holed up in a corner, reading a book "Just need to talk to Elena over there."

Luna looked up from her book with a frown "Can I bite her? She smells good."

"No," Damon told her firmly "No biting Elena or anyone else. You know what we talked about."

She pouted "No showing my eyes to anyone who isn't you, Steffi or Ric."

"Good girl," her uncle ruffled her hair, speeding over to Elena, dropping into a chair in front of her.

Luna tilted her head, listening in on them "What do you want?" the Doppelgänger sighed, putting down the book with a thump.

"So, this is where you spend your time when you're not stabbing people in the back," Damon said emotionlessly.

Elena groaned "I tricked you into telling me the truth, that's not stabbing you in the back, it' using your own tactics against you." She got up from her chair.

"Where are you going?" the vampire demanded forcefully.

"I made myself clear, Damon. I want nothing to do with you," the girl shot back, glaring at Luna's uncle. She definitely wasn't earning any points in the four-year-old's books.

Damon shrugged "Okay. See you at Jenna's barbecue."

"How did you know about Jenna's barbecue?" Elena frowned.

"It was my idea," Damon smirked "Jenna went to High School with Mason Lockwood so I figured a social gathering would be a good way to get to know the guy. So I told Ric to tell Jenna and…"

Elena snorted "Does Jenna know that you're going to be there because she's not exactly a fan of yours."

A woman came over to them and handed Damon a box with the peach cobbler inside "Here you go."

"Perfect," the vampire smiled "Thank you. I'm hoping this peach cobbler will pave the way."

"What are you up to?" Elena squinted suspiciously.

Damon's gaze turned feral "I'm gonna put some silver into Mason Lockwood and prove he is a werewolf. Then I'm going to find out why my niece always freaks out whenever she hears the word 'werewolf'. See you at the barbecue." He walked back to where Luna was still sitting, staring blankly at the Dr. Seuss' book in front of her "Come on, little one. Let's go and get your new stuff home and then we'll go to see Ric, alright?"

"Okay," she nodded, grabbing a hold of the book with one hand, slipping the other in Damon's. When they got to the Boarding House, Damon could hear Stefan and Katherine talking but ignored them in favour of helping Luna choose some clothes for the barbecue. She wanted to wear some of her new clothes, excited that she got so many new things, even though she argued that it was way too much. After a short period of the little girl staring at some clothes, she chose a black dress with a leather-like vest and some mid-calf boots that the woman at the store had picked out for them. Damon had immediately put them in the 'buy' pile because for one, Luna looked too cute in them and she looked pretty badass for a four-year-old. Now they had matching leather jackets.

An hour after they met Elena at the Grill, the two Salvatores walked into the Gilbert Residence "Hey," Damon smiled at the three adults in the kitchen, holding out the cake for Jenna while Luna made a beeline for Alaric.

"Uncle Dami bought me new clothes," she stated proudly, smiling up at the teacher sunnily.

Alaric chuckled "You chose very well there, Luna." He put his shot glass down and lifted Luna to sit on the kitchen isle. Once she was situated, Alaric turned to Damon "We were just doing shots. Let me give you a glass, buddy."

"Here," Jenna muttered, pressing her glass into the vampire's hands "Use mine." She left with Alaric right behind her. Luna stared after them with wide eyes, not really understanding why the pretty lady was mad at her uncle.

"She doesn't like me very much," Damon pointed out, looking at the other occupant of the room apart from his niece.

Mason raised an eyebrow "We haven't met. Mason Lockwood."

Damon shook his hand "Oh sure. Damon Salvatore. This is my niece Luna."

"I know," the werewolf nodded "That little one is the talk of the town. Or at least with Carol, she is. She came out of nowhere. I also heard great things about you."

"Really?" the older Salvatore blinked "That's weird. I'm a dick." As soon as he said that, he could see Luna's eyes glued to Mason, a certain fear hidden in them. He made a mental note to talk to her about this. There was nothing normal about her reaction to someone she didn't even know. The closest anyone came to getting her to talk was Caroline and he didn't want her too close to Luna yet. Not until he was sure that she had no trouble controlling her bloodlust around the four-year-old "Excuse me for a moment." He lifted his niece from the counter and walked her over to where Jenna and Ric were quietly conversing "Can I leave Luna with you until food is done?" The vampire leaned closer to Ric "She's afraid of Mason. I don't know what else to do."

"Of course," Alaric nodded, glancing at Jenna who nodded with a small smile.

Once Damon was back in the room where Mason was, Jenna bend down to talk to Luna "We haven't officially met yet, I'm Jenna."

"You're pretty," she blurted out and then blushed, hiding her face behind her long hair.

"Aww," Jenna cooed "You're adorable. Ric talks about you a lot," she added in a conspiratorial whisper "How do you like living with Damon and Stefan?"

Luna shrugged "I miss my momma but they are nice to me. I even got new stuff. Momma couldn't buy me this much. Dami buyed me books."

"Bought," Ric correct with a grin, seeing the love Luna had for her uncle. She might only have lived with them for a week or two but they were already so close "I'm going to tell Caroline and Elena that food is ready. Do you want to come with me?"

The girl bounce "Caroline is here? Please?"

Alaric chuckled, scooping Luna into his arms. It almost felt natural to him by now. He spent just as much time as Damon did with the four-year-old tucked into his embrace "Then let's go." He peaked out of the door to the garden "Hey! Food's ready, come get it."

"Finally," Caroline sighed "I'm starving." She got up and saw Luna, stealing her right out of her History teacher's arms "Hello, baby girl. How are you today?"

Thin arms wrapped around her neck in a strangling hug "Good," she squealed "Do you liked my dress?"

The young vampire hummed, pretending to study the little girl intently "Your dress is really pretty, Luna. Did you choose that?"

"Yes," she clapped, bouncing in the blonde's arms while Caroline carried her to the table where they were going to eat. She sat down, Luna situated in her lap.

Damon put a small plate in front of her along with a bigger one "Here."

"Thank you, Damon," Caroline nodded.

After all of them ate, they piled into the living room. The Salvatore vampire pulled out something for Luna to play with while they did whatever. He handed his niece a workbook along with a set of pencils. They got a lot of those both academical and for colouring. While he didn't want to send her to school, they could teach her a lot as well.

So, while she was distracted and learning something new, everyone else was playing Pictionary. It was the older vampire's turn to draw and he decided to mess with Mason as much as he possibly could. Damon drew a wolf wearing a tutu.

"Dress! Ballerina," Jenna shouted, startling Luna with the volume of her voice.

Caroline tilted her head "Puppy! Puppy with a tutu!"

"No, no," Damon snorted.

"A dog," the human woman pointed "Hound-dog!"

Mason leaned back in the chair, bored "'Dances with Wolves'"

"Mason wins," Damon sighed "Again."

Jenna's lips twitched when Damon left the room to go to the kitchen "How is that a wolf? Luna? Does that look like a wolf to you?"

Luna looked up from tracing numbers again and blinked at the picture "No?"

"Ha," the Doppelgänger's aunt clapped "See, even Luna says so." She got up to see where Damon and Elena were with the cobbler.

While they were gone, Caroline eased herself onto the ground next to the blonde child who had her tongue poking out the side of her mouth while she was carefully tracing the eight, taking care to stay on the line "Do you know which number that is?"

"Eight?" she questioned.

"Exactly," Caroline smiled "That's double your age."

Luna gasped "Wow. That's old."

"I'm seventeen," the newly turned vampire said, pointing to the one and the seven "How far can you count?"

"Momma taught me to count to f – fifty."

The teenager gasped excitedly "Then you must be really smart." She turned to look up at Ric "Is that normal?"

"I don't think so," he murmured "You're good with her, by the way."

"Thanks," Caroline smiled, happy that someone complimented her for something that was… her. Normally, people only nitpicked her skills or behaviour…

"Okay, people. Gather up. Dessert," Jenna called, sitting down at the dining table again.

The young blonde shuffled Luna to the couch with her, quietly talking to the toddler who was telling her a story about her momma. Just before Maria died, she took Luna to the zoo, looking at all the different animals for her fourth birthday "Really? What animal did you like best?"

"Horse," the four-year-old cheered "I got to sit on one."

"I really like horses too," Caroline said, reminiscing "When I was younger my parents would take me horse riding." Luna's big eyes met Caroline's and she snuggled into the older girl, feeling that she was sad. Talking about her parents together was still a blow for Caroline. She missed her dad but he had to run off with another man "So, when is your birthday?"

"February 12?" Luna mumbled, furrowing her brows in thought. It was a few days before her momma left her and she could vaguely remember being told that it was something with a 12.

"Would I be the worst friend in the world if I abandoned you and went to Stefan's?" Elena asked, coming into the living room. Her eyes narrowed when she saw one of her best friends with Damon's niece in her lap.

Caroline looked up in confusion "You want to leave?"

"It's just that he hasn't gotten back to me and I'm starting to get this bad feeling," the Doppelgänger sighed.

"I don't think that's a good idea," the blonde cheerleader pointed out.

Elena shrugged "Damon's got it under control here."

"Take it from me," Caroline murmured "There's nothing worse than a clingy girlfriend."

"I'm not being clingy," Elena protested "I'm just concerned. You understand, right?"

The newly turned vampire sighed "How about I drive you?"

"Yeah, okay, that'll be great. Thanks," the brown haired girl said.

"Great! I just need to talk to Damon real quick." The blonde got up and walked Luna over to her vampire uncle "Hey, I'm driving Elena to the Boarding House. Should I take Luna with me?"

Damon looked at Caroline "Would you? I'm not sure how long I'll stay and she might be less bored with Stefan right now." She nodded, turning to walk away when Damon caught her wrist "Thank you for entertaining her."

"No problem," she smiled "I like her." Elena was already in the car, waiting for Caroline to come back. The vampire opened the back door to allow the four-year-old to climb in and buckled her in. She didn't have a car seat but the drive wasn't that long. It should be fine. Once Luna was settled, she quickly deflated a tire and got into the driver's side, starting in the direction of the Boarding House.

"Thanks for doing this," Elena smiled "I appreciate it."

Caroline sighed in annoyance "Here we come, to the rescue."

"Why are you being so snippy?"

"That's my own drama. I'm sure that you two will beat the odds. Not that there is any study to pull odds from. What is the ratio of success for vampire-human couplings? I'm guessing nil," Caroline argued.

Elena rolled her eyes "Okay Caroline."

"Sorry."

The Doppelgänger turned up the radio, making Luna clutch at her ears. The little girl was quite sensitive to loud noises when she was tired. There was always a too loud but it got worse when she's tired. She gasped when the car severed slightly and slowed down at the side of the road.

It was night-time and Caroline and Elena were outside the car, waiting for the tow truck "Are you sure the tow's coming? We've been waiting forever."

"I know," Caroline frowned "It's weird. They said they'd be here by now."

"Yeah. I'm just gonna call Jenna," Elena said.

The blonde shook her head "No. Just let me try the tow people again. And I'll use my agro voice."

The Doppelgänger looked down the road "We can just walk from here."

"I can't leave my car," Caroline argued.

"We'll come back for it," Elena shrugged.

The cheerleader groaned "Fine. I'll wait for the truck and you take Luna with you to the Boarding House."

"Fine," Elena huffed, grabbing the child's arm, tugging her along. Once they were out of Caroline's sight, the Doppelgänger dropped Luna's limb as if it burned her "Hurry up then."

The four-year-old stumbled after the older girl, trying very hard not to react to the hurt she was feeling. Why did she hate her so much? Luna never did anything to Elena…

"Stefan?" Elena called, hurrying through the doors to the Boarding House, not paying any mind to the little girl or if she was following her "Stefan?"

Suddenly, Katherine was behind her Doppelgänger "You must be Elena," she smiled pleasantly "Hello again, Luna." There was still something so familiar about the child but the memory evaded her. But who did the child remind her of?

"How is it possible?" the human gaped "How do we look exactly alike?"

Katherine didn't answer but looked at her from top to bottom. She touched her doubles neck with one finger as she spoke and walked around her "You're asking the wrong questions."

"Elena?!" Stefan panted, running into the room. He quickly took in the scene and snarled "Luna, go to your room and don't come out until I come for you." Luna nodded her head and ran up the stairs at human speed, shutting the door to her room behind her.


	7. 2x07 Masquerade

It's been a few days since Elena met Katherine and Luna mostly stayed with Alaric or Caroline. Damon and Stefan for once decided it was better to keep their niece out of trouble. Today though, they wanted to spend a day together. Just the three of them.

That plan was ruined when Caroline barged in, all panicky. Stefan immediately pushed her down onto one of the couches, while Damon went to fetch a glass of blood "Here," he murmured, passing it over.

"I'm still shaking," the blonde mumbled, taking a gulp of the blood.

"What happened?" Stefan questioned, cuddling Luna on his lap. He felt a bit guilty for spending so much time with Elena recently. Ever since the four-year-old came to live with them, she was mostly with Damon.

The older brother already knew from when Caroline called him earlier, so he just sighed and flopped down next to his brother "Go ahead, tell him. You're gonna love this."

"I saw Katherine today," the newly turned vampire said.

Stefan blinked "Where?"

"At the Grill," she murmured "I just stopped by to gawk and… quasi-stalk Matt." Caroline then went into detail about what happened at the Grill and what the older vampire wanted from them.

"She wants to do it in public," the younger of the two brothers pointed out "Killing Mason threw her off guard."

Damon nodded "She's running scared. What she did to Jenna was desperate. She's out of tricks."

"We can't underestimate her. We have to play this smarter than her," Stefan mused.

"Can we just give her the moonstone so she'll leave?" Caroline frowned.

"No," Damon snapped "Katherine's not getting dick. I've had it. I'm gonna go to the masquerade ball and I'm gonna kill her, tonight."

Stefan rolled his eyes "You're not gonna kill her."

"Don't give me that goody-goody crap," his older brother groaned.

"You're not gonna kill her," Stefan repeated.

Damon tilted his head "Really?"

"Because I am."

"Plan," Damon muttered after minutes of stunned silence "We need a plan. Go and text Bonnie, will you? I'll call Ric."

A while later, Luna was solving a puzzle on the floor by Damon's feet, while he was talking to Alaric, discussing the weapons in front of them.

"This works with compressed air," Alaric explained, turning to everyone "The trigger mechanism is up here. I have two of these in a different size. For you, I recommend this. It fits nicely under the jacket sleeve. You use the trigger when you're ready." He faked killing a vampire. The Salvatore brothers looked at each other and back again "You wanted me to show you how to kill a vampire."

"Thanks for that, Ric," Stefan spoke up "It's definitely going to be helpful."

Bonnie stared at the younger vampire "Stefan, can I talk to you for a sec. Alone?"

Damon bent down to pick Luna up into his arms, ignoring her protests "Ric, can you watch over Luna tonight? I don't want to leave her alone and…"

"And I can keep an eye on Elena as well," he finished the sentence "You know I'm always happy to look after the little one. Are you sure you don't want me there tonight though?"

"I need you to stay with Elena," Stefan who had just returned to the room told the hunter "I don't want her to know about this."

Alaric shrugged "Okay. Well, I'll make sure she doesn't leave my sight."

"Alright," Stefan clapped "If anybody wants to back out, I'll understand."

Damon smirked "Yeah. Cold feet speak now. I don't want this going wrong if someone chicken's out. Caroline."

"I won't," the cheerleader protested "Look, she killed me. Fair is fair. As long as there's no werewolf running around."

"Oh, I took care of Mason," Damon waved off.

Jeremy nodded "As long as Tyler doesn't kill anyone, he won't turn."

"Bonnie?" Stefan questioned "Are you with us?"

The witch paused for a long moment, studying everyone in the room "But no one gets hurt."

"Except Katherine," Damon corrected "Tonight Katherine gets a stake through her heart."

That evening, Luna was sitting on a chair next to the couch Jenna was resting on. The older woman was talking to the little girl. As little as she seemed to like Damon, his niece was simply too adorable to hate.

"I feel like an invalid," Jenna groaned out after a while.

Elena grinned "That's because you are an invalid. Where's Jeremy? Isn't he hungry?"

"He already left," the older woman pointed out "For the Lockwood party."

"He went to that?" the Doppelgänger blinked in surprise.

Jenna nodded "Yeah, I'm glad. He needs to have more fun. Lose some of that emo thing."

"I'm gonna get some napkins," Elena mumbled, heading to the kitchen where Alaric was.

Luna looked after her, nose twitching a little. Jenna smiled "She's not the most subtle person," she whispered conspiratorially.

"Where's the bathroom?" Luna mumbled suddenly, completely changing the subject.

"It's down the hall, sweetie. Are you alright to go on your own?"

The four-year-old nodded and stumbled over to where Jenna said the bathroom would be. Once she was finished, Elena was standing by the stairs "Hey guys, I'm gonna go to bed. You good over there?" she called, not seeing Luna watching her.

"Goodnight," Jenna called back.

Elena smirked lightly "Night." She grabbed her keys and was about to leave when the little girl stopped her.

"You aren't supposed to leave," Luna pointed out "I'm gonna tell Ric."

The Doppelgänger hissed and wrapped her hand around Luna's mouth, dragging her out of the house. She was sure that Stefan wouldn't mind her bringing Luna. There was no danger at the party anyway, so it shouldn't matter. Even if there was danger, maybe this was her chance to get rid of the little attention seeker. Elena shoved Luna into the back seat and sped off to the Lockwood Mansion. Once there, she frowned, seeing her friends run around panicked "You'll stay out of sight until I come back," she snapped at Luna, pressing her against the car door "Understood?"

"Yes," Luna whispered, sounding somewhat scared of the older girl. While she could defend herself, Dami and Steffi told her not to show anyone her other face. She watched as Elena grabbed her brother's arm, demanding to know what happened. She watched as they walked off to where she presumed Bonnie was waiting and then the little girl was alone. Luna tried to see if she could listen to Elena but she was too far away and now the only thing she could do was to stand here and wait. Of course, she could try to find one of her uncles but they were trying to kill the other one who looked like Elena. They wouldn't be pleased if she got in the way of their plan. Luna wasn't sure how much time passed until Elena returned, her phone pressed to her ear. She was tired though. Tired, hungry and kind of cold.

"Yeah Jeremy, I've got my car," Elena sighed "Tell Bonnie that whatever she did, I'm starting to feel better. Yeah, you can drive her home. I'm just gonna go straight to bed. Okay." She hung up and stalked over to Luna "Did anyone see you?" Luna shook her head silently "Great. That's great. Let's get you back before Stefan finds out you're missing."

Suddenly, a masked man came up behind Elena and covered her mouth with a cloth. Luna froze, staring at the stranger with wide eyes. Once the Doppelgänger was down, the man turned to her, before he knocked the four-year-old out as well, dragging them to his car.


	8. 2x08 Rose

After Stefan talked to Jeremy, he immediately called his older brother and asked him to meet up at the school. They had to talk to Alaric.

"What do you mean 'she's gone'?" Damon shouted at Alaric "I told you to watch her."

The hunter held up his hands, stepping away from the angry vampire "She went to the bathroom and then she was gone. I think Elena took her along."

The oldest Salvatore's eyes narrowed "Elena? Elena was kidnapped, Ric. Are you telling me that my niece just got kidnapped by some random guy?"

"I don't know," Ric murmured "I really hope not… I'm really sorry, Damon but I trusted Elena not to be stupid."

"So did I," Damon hissed, whirling around to face his brother "Come on. We're going to find them. Somehow."

Stefan ran to catch up with his older brother "I talked to Elena earlier. Luna wasn't with her."

"She left her alone?" Damon exclaimed, his worry and fear for the four-year-old mounting even more "Oh, I'm definitely going to have a talk with that bitch."

"She's not Katherine," his younger brother pointed out "Don't talk about her like that."

"Don't…" the older vampire snorted "Are you joking? Stefan, Elena took Luna into a situation that could have been – and was – dangerous. If you care for that little girl at all, you won't let Elena get away with what she did. In love or not."

Stefan swallowed and thought about everything he had heard Elena say about their niece when she thought they weren't listening. He wanted to believe that she was nothing like Katherine but how could he? She acted as if Luna was a pest, a burden "You're right. What do we do now?"

"I think we're going to have to ask everyone's favourite witch," Damon sighed, well aware that Bonnie hated him. He only hoped that she would do it to get Elena back.

* * *

Meanwhile, in a random area outside of Mystic Falls, a car drove up to an already parked SUV. Luna was whimpering quietly in the backseat, huddling into a tiny ball. She had woken up a few minutes ago and had quickly remembered everything.

"Where is she?" she heard the driver of the SUV ask with her enhanced hearing.

"In the trunk," the man who kidnapped her replied "There was a problem though. She wasn't alone."

The covered man hummed "No matter, no matter. The important thing is that you got the Doppelgänger. Put them in the back."

The kidnapper opened the trunk of the SUV and walked back over to the car Luna was in. She hadn't seen Elena but if they talked about her, she had to be somewhere, right? The kidnapper opened the rear passenger door, staring at the small girl emotionlessly. He reached in and jerked her out of the car by her small arm.

"Wait," the man in the car stopped them "Put her in the front." The kidnapper changed direction and shoved Luna into the passenger seat, slamming the door shut behind her. Once that was done, he went back to his car and leaned over the edge of the trunk, pulling an unconscious Elena out, depositing her in the trunk of the SUV. After he put Elena down, he joined the driver "Thank you for your help."

"Is there anything else?" the kidnapper questioned dully.

The man next to Luna smirked "One more thing. Come closer, please. Closer." As soon as he got close enough, the man, no vampire, leaned forward, biting into the man's next deeply.

Luna's nose twitched, trying to block out the scent of blood. A mantra of 'Don't show, don't show, don't show' went through her head. She turned her face away from the strange vampire and curled up into a small ball against the door. She was scared, maybe even more scared than she had been when her momma had still been living with that man…

"What's your name?" the driver asked, glancing at the tiny girl with a frown. Was it just him or did she look like someone he knew? No, it couldn't be. He didn't have any contact with humans except for eating in a while. When he didn't get an answer, he tried again "How old are you?" After ten minutes of Luna staring out of the window, he gave up and drove the rest of the way in silence.

After two or two and a half hours, the SUV pulled up into a driveway of a run-down house. The driver got out and opened the passenger side for Luna to get out "Wait here," he commanded, walking around the back of the car to get Elena as well. He carried the Doppelgänger into the house and gestured for the small girl to follow them.

"What do you want?" Elena groaned, slowly coming around.

"Ssh," the man hushed, leaning over the older girl.

Elena shifted away from him "Please, I'm hurt."

"I know," the vampire smirked "Just a taste." His face vamped out, leaning down to bite her wound.

A voice stopped him though "Trevor! Control yourself."

Trevor sighed "Buzzkill." Then, he got up, ruffled Luna's hair and left. As soon as he got close, the four-year-old flinched back, curling in on herself more. She wanted her momma… It didn't matter that she was in heaven, Luna needed her. Plain and simple.

"What do you want with me?" Elena squinted, turning to face the vampire woman.

She gasped "Oh my God, you look just like her."

"But I'm not," Elena denied "Please, whatever you –"

"Be quiet!" the vampire shouted.

Elena shook her head "But I'm not Katherine. My name is Elena Gilbert, you don't have to do this."

"I know who you are," the vampire rolled her eyes in annoyance "I said be quiet."

"What do you want?"

The other woman slapped the Doppelgänger hard, making her fall back on the couch, unconscious "I want you to be quiet." With a sigh, she turned to the other smaller person in the room and her face softened at the frightened look "I'm sorry you had to see this. I'm Rose. Do you want to tell me your name?"

Luna trembled, pressing back against the armchair she found "L-Luna."

"It's nice to meet you," Rose smiled gently "Are you her sister?"

The four-year-old shook her head harshly, making her hair fly around wildly "No. Ric was supposed to look after me and she took me and then we got took."

"After this is over, I'll bring you back to your parents, alright?"

"Momma is in heaven and I don't know my papa," Luna murmured.

Rose closed her eyes and internally cursed for bringing up something like that "Who do you live with?"

Luna shrugged "My Uncle Dami and Uncle Steffi."

The older vampire blinked. Dami and Steffi? Like Damon and Stefan Salvatore? "Salvatore?"

The little girl nodded and wrapped her arms around her legs tiredly. She was scared of Trevor but Rose was nice. Nicer than Elena. Luna felt at least somewhat safe around the older vampire, so it was no surprise that last night and today was catching up with the little one. Luna felt her eyes dropping a bit and she drifted off a bit.

She only woke sometime later to Elena's annoyed groan. When she looked over to the couch the Doppelgänger was sitting on, Luna saw that she was holding some sort of paper with writing on it.

"He's here," Trevor mumbled, entering the room we were in at the moment. He sounded scared, panicked "This was a mistake."

"No," Rose denied, speeding over to shake her friend harshly "I told you I would get us out of this. You have to trust me."

Trevor shook his head "No! He wants me dead, Rose."

Rose smiled secretively "He wants her more."

"I can't do this," the male vampire groaned "You give her to him, he'll have mercy on you but I need to get out of here."

"Hey!" Rose called, grabbing her friend's attention "What are we?"

"Family," Trevor smiled "Forever."

Suddenly, there was a loud knock on the door. Was this the person they were so afraid of? Luna wasn't sure whether she wanted to find out who it was.

"You're scared," Elena wondered.

"Stay here with them," Rose commanded, running up the stairs "Don't make a sound."

Luna could hear the barest hint of voices but they were too quiet to listen to, so she just curled into a tighter ball, hoping against hope that whoever was here, didn't mean her any harm. Elena meanwhile had her head turned away from the door but she turned as soon as the loud footsteps came to a stop. The man who was standing there took Luna by surprise. He was wearing a suit and looked pretty harmless but she knew from experience that the harmless looking ones could hurt you way more. The stranger sped in front of Elena and smelt her neck "Human. It's impossible," he murmured "Hello there." Just then, Luna shifted the littlest bit, making the man's head snap to her. She caught his gaze and shivered at his look "It can't be. Who is she?" he asked Rose, not turning his eyes away from the little girl. This was impossible. She looked like a female replica of his younger brother. How could this be? This was no coincidence, he was sure of it…

"She said her name is Luna," Rose shrugged "She was caught with the Doppelgänger, so they brought her along."

"Hm," Elijah hummed thoughtfully, before turning back to look at the human Doppelgänger "We have a long journey ahead of us. We should be going. I'll take the little one with me as well."

Elena turned to Rose pleadingly, sparing no worry for the fact that Luna was here as well. She was more important "Please, don't let him take me."

"One last piece of business and we're done," the old vampire remarked, going towards Trevor.

"I've waited so long for this day, Elijah," he murmured reverently "I'm truly, very sorry."

Elijah looked at him with a hint of disgust "Oh no, your apology's not necessary."

"Yes," Trevor protested "Yes it is. You trusted me with Katerina and I failed you."

"Oh yes, you are the guilty one," Elijah said "Rose aided you because she was loyal to you and that I honour. Where was your loyalty?"

Trevor bowed his head "I beg your forgiveness."

"So granted." Trevor breathed out shakily and started smiling but Elijah whirled around gracefully, smacking the other vampire's head clean off his body. Rose cried out, while Luna was staring at the blood with wide eyes. She was trembling like a leaf now and tears were forming in her eyes. There was only so much that could happen to someone so young before it left traces.

"You…"

"Don't, Rose," Elijah waved her off "Now that you're free." He looked at Elena, walking over to where Luna was curled up. He had completely forgotten the fact that there was a young child in the room, otherwise the Original would have made sure that she wasn't looking "Come."

Elena froze "No, what about the moonstone?"

"What do you know about the moonstone?" Elijah squinted, pulling the child up carefully. It wouldn't do to hurt her… If she was indeed who he thought she was, then he didn't want her to be afraid of him.

Elena smiled shakily "I know that you need it and I know where it is."

"Yes?"

"I can help you get it," the Doppelgänger negotiated.

Elijah raised an eyebrow "Tell me where it is."

"It doesn't work that way," Elena stated.

"Are you negotiating with me?" he questioned with an amused smirk, looking over his shoulder at Rose.

"It's the first I've heard of it," she snapped.

Elijah tried to compel the Doppelgänger but failed "What's this vervain doing around your neck?" He ripped the necklace off and threw it away "Tell me where the moonstone is."

"In the tomb," Elena replied dazedly "Underneath the church ruins."

"What's it doing there?"

"It's with Katherine," she said.

Elijah hummed "Interesting." Suddenly, there was glass breaking upstairs "What is that?"

Rose shook her head "I don't know."

"Who else is in this house?"

"I don't know," Rose replied honestly.

Elijah grabbed Elena with his other hand while pulling both the Doppelgänger and the young girl into another part of the house. He plucked some hair from Luna's head, wanting a security. He wasn't sure what was going to happen but he'd be damned if Elijah wouldn't find out the truth. As soon as they were standing in the foyer, he let go of Luna and within the blink of an eye she was gone "Rose."

The female vampire shrugged "I don't know who it is."

"Up here," Stefan called.

Elijah left Elena with Rose, speeding halfway up the staircase.

Damon's voice was heard next as he comforted his niece who was clinging to him in fright "Down here." The oldest Salvatore was going to kill them all for taking Luna from him. Especially since she seemed to be terrified.

"Excuse me," Elijah called out "To whom it may concern, you're making a great mistake if you think that you can beat me. You can't. Do you hear that?" He broke a wooden coat rack, fashioning a makeshift stake "I repeat, you cannot beat me. So I want the girls, I'm gonna count to three or heads will roll. Do we understand each other?"

While he was busy with Elena and Stefan, Damon sped out of the door quickly, sitting Luna down against a tree "Wait here. I'll be right back, okay?"

She sniffled lightly, tightening her hands in his jacket "No."

"Luna," Damon sighed "I have to help Stefan. I promise you that I will be back in ten minutes, alright?" The four-year-old reluctantly released her grip and curled up against the tree, watching as her uncle left her again. Thankfully, he did indeed return within the space of ten minutes and picked up his niece again "I was so worried," he murmured into her hair, practically squishing her against him.

Stefan walked up behind them, trailing a hand down Luna's face, wiping away the tears that were dropping onto her cheeks. Yes, he had saved Elena but that didn't mean that he was particularly happy about what she did. The younger of the two brothers had seen the corpse in there. No one should have had to witness that, especially not a child "Let's get her home, Damon," he murmured, prodding his older brother in the direction of the car "Do you want me to drive?"

"It's better," Damon nodded. There was no way he would let go of the four-year-old anytime soon. This could have gone so much worse than it had. What if she had died? But no, she was here. Somewhat traumatized but ultimately alright. Back at the Boarding House, Damon immediately retired to his room with Luna in tow. She had fallen into an uneasy sleep shortly after they left the house "Come on, little moon. I need you to wake up for a moment. You need a bath."


	9. 2x09 Katerina

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those of you reading my other stories as well... I'm out of the country for the next two and a half weeks, so I might not update a lot in that time. I have three chapters written up for three of my stories and am working on another one. That might be the only stuff I'm going to post. Depending on how much time I have. The chapter I have I'm going to post now, so I'm not sure if you can expect anything for the mext weeks. Sorry.
> 
> Thank you for your Reviews. Glad you enjoyed it so far.
> 
> Enjoy,
> 
> Nick

"Elijah," Jonas Martin greeted, having just opened the door for him "What can I do for you?" He stepped aside, letting the Original enter.

"There is a Doppelgänger," Elijah told him "I saw her. A human Doppelgänger."

The Warlock blinked "So they were telling the truth?"

"Yes, but that doesn't matter right now," the vampire waved off "Can you do a spell that shows either the father or the nearest blood-related person if I give you some hair?"

"Why?"

Elijah shook his head "Now is not the time to ask questions. Can you or can't you do it?"

Jonas shrugged "I can if you have the hair."

"Here," the Original murmured, handing over the strand he gathered from the girl earlier. It couldn't be a coincidence, right? How often does someone look exactly like someone else without being related to that person? Probably never.

"Give me your hands," the Warlock instructed "You'll see the living parents of whoever that hair belongs to."

Elijah grabbed Jonas' hands in his and closed his eyes as the man started chanting. There was a flash behind his eyelids and there was indeed a picture of his younger brother. His eyes flashed open and he stared at the Warlock in shock. Vampires couldn't procreate and Niklaus' werewolf side was still bound. This really shouldn't be possible "Are you certain that you did this right?"

"Yes. No doubt about it. What did you see?" Jonas questioned curiously.

"I do not think this is any of your concern. Thank you, Jonas," Elijah spoke coldly, getting up from the chair. He had some thinking to do and it was best to do it alone.

* * *

"Hello, Elena," Damon greeted the Doppelgänger coldly, carrying Luna who hadn't let go of him since she woke up. Actually, she hadn't let go of him even while she was sleeping. Every time he tried to move, Luna would tighten her grip and start crying.

"Is Stefan here?" the teenage girl dismissed "He called. He said it was important."

The vampire sighed "Right this way." She entered the house, smiling when the younger of the brothers appeared.

"Elena," Stefan nodded, sounding not quite as annoyed as Damon but it was close. He had seen what the kidnapping did to Luna.

Elena looked up at her ex "What is this about?" Rose stepped out from one of the doors "You."

"Okay, you have to understand I only know what I've picked up over the years and I don't know what's true and what's not true," Rose explained when they were all sitting on the couches. While she talked, she watched the four-year-old sadly. It was obvious that the events of the previous day had hurt her more than she ever wanted "It's the problem with all this vampire crap but Klaus, I know he's real."

"Who is he?" Elena demanded.

Damon shrugged "He's one of the Originals, he's a legend."

"From the first generation of vampires," Stefan added.

Luna snuffled against Damon's neck "Elijah?"

"No," Rose shook her head gently "Elijah was the Easter bunny compared to Klaus. He's a foot soldier. Klaus is the real deal."

"Klaus is known to be the oldest," the younger Salvatore brother pointed out. Rose had told them everything last night.

Elena sighed "Okay, so you're saying that the oldest vampire in the history of time is coming after me?"

"Yes," Rose nodded at the same time as Stefan shook his head "No."

"What they're saying," Damon cut in, combing through Luna's hair "I mean if what she's saying is true…"

Rose rolled her eyes "Which it is."

"And you're not saying it so I don't kill you for what you did to my niece…"

"Which I'm not."

Damon glared at her "Then we're looking at a solid maybe."

Stefan sighed "Look, Elijah's dead, right? So no one else even knows that you exist."

"Not that you know of," Rose pointed out.

"That's not helping."

The younger brother looked at his ex-girlfriend "Look, I've never even met anyone who's laid eyes on him. I mean, we're talking centuries of truth mixed with fiction. We don't know if he's real. For all we know he could just be some stupid bedtime story."

"He's real," Rose snapped "And he doesn't give up. If he wants something, he gets it. If you're not afraid of Klaus, then you're an idiot."

"Alright," Damon groaned "We're shaking. You made your point." When Elena stood up, he grabbed her arm "We still have to talk about you putting our niece in danger."

Elena glared at him "I have to go to school. I'm late."

Stefan exchanged a look with his brother "Let me grab my stuff, I'll go with you."

"It's okay," Elena shook her head "I know where it is." Once she was gone, the vampires sighed. This was harder than they thought but the Doppelgänger didn't even react the slightest bit. She didn't even feel guilty.

"I need to go too," Stefan murmured, kissing Luna's forehead.

After the younger brother left to go to school, Damon picked Luna up, carrying her to the kitchen. He could hear her stomach grumbling and knew that his niece last had some blood three days ago "Let's get you something to eat, hm?" When he went to put her down, she whined pitifully "Come on, little moon. I have to get some blood from the cellar. You know how much you hate being down there. I'll be right back, okay?"

"Dami," Luna whispered quietly, stretching out her arm when her uncle walked away.

"I'll be back in a moment, Luna."

The little girl curled up on the table she was sitting on, waiting for her uncle to return "Luna?" Rose spoke up "I wanted to apologize."

"You don't get to talk to her," Damon snapped, coming back into the kitchen with three blood bags. One he handed to Rose and filled the other one into a tall glass, putting it in the fridge for a moment. Once he was done, he grabbed eggs and some pancake mix "You can go now."

The female vampire's lips twitched sadly. She couldn't really fault the other guy. She did, after all, play a role in hurting that little girl. Lexi told her about the two brothers… Damon was nothing like the bad boy he had been described as. Sure, he was kind of cold to her and that Doppelgänger but other than that… He was so loving and gentle with Luna that she was surprised to hear she only stayed with them for a few weeks "Alright. I'll – I'll leave you."

As soon as she was out of the kitchen, Damon handed his niece the glass of blood "Here. I'll make you something to eat." Luna sipped at the blood, black veins creeping under her eyes. Damon glanced over at her. Her eyes were a peculiar blueish gold opposed to the normal red.

Ten minutes later, he put a plate with two pancakes and a small spoon of scrambled eggs in front of her, grabbing the empty glass which previously held the blood "Thank you," she smiled cutely, poking at the food slowly.

"Come on," the older Salvatore clapped his hands once he saw that she was done. He picked her up and they walked into the living room together "Alright Rosebud?" Damon questioned, seeing her wiping her tears "I need some answers."

"Okay," she shrugged "What do you want to know?"

Damon settled himself onto one of the couches, ignoring the fact that the four-year-old was messing up his hair "How do I find Klaus?"

"You don't find Klaus, he finds you," Rose snorted.

"Come on," the Salvatore mumbled "Somebody's got to know somebody who knows where he is, right?"

The older of the two vampires raised her eyebrow "Add another two hundred somebodies to that and you're still not even close."

"Humour me." He pulled Luna's hand out of his hair and mock glared at his niece "I thought you were out of the age where children always pulled at hair." Luna giggled at him and was now playing with the daylight ring on Damon's middle finger. He sighed and decided to just humour her "Fine…" Rose smiled at the two of them. They were really cute together "You got in touch with Elijah, didn't you? How did you do it?"

"Through a very low somebody on the totem pole. A guy names Slater in Richmond," Rose explained.

Damon clapped his hands "Perfect. I'll drive." He jumped up and threw a giggling Luna over his shoulder. There was no way he was leaving his niece alone today… And this guy couldn't mean any harm, right?

"No," she called out "You forget not all of us can do sun."

The younger vampire threw her the keys "Then you drive," he shrugged "Come on."

The three of them reached Richmond within an hour and a half. Rose didn't speed as much as she would have if there hadn't been a small child in the backseat.

"Back entrance," Damon grimaced "How convenient."

"That's the point," Rose rolled her eyes "We can't all have little daylight rings."

Damon hitched Luna higher on his waist "How do you know this Slater guy is even here?"

The female vampire glared at the obnoxious vampire "I called him. He's here. He's always here."

"Good," Damon nodded "Just one thing. If you're setting me up in any way, I will rip your heart out and shove it down your throat."

Rose squinted at him but refrained from attacking "I'm older than you and stronger. If I hadn't hurt Luna enough already, I would threaten to kill you. You can trust me."

They entered the coffee shop and Damon blinked "Whoa. What about the sunlight?"

"Double paned and tempered," Rose gestured "UV rays can't penetrate. You see the appeal now?"

A strange man appeared next to them "That and the free Wi-Fi."

Rose embraced him tightly "Hey, how are you?"

"Good," Slater smiled "I saw you come, what are you doing here?"

"Mm, it's a long story," she sighed "But I want you to meet…"

Slater looked at the dark haired vampire "Damon Salvatore. Turned 1864 in Mystic Falls by Katherine Pierce aka Katerina Petrova. So I take it I was right, what I told you about the tomb under the church was true?"

"Yes," Rose laughed "It was right. Thank you for the tip."

He looked at Damon thoughtfully "It's nice to meet you, maybe. Who is the little one?"

"None of your business." The two Salvatores walked past the old friends and settled at a table. Luna squirmed on Damon's lap until he put her down on the ground "Hey, do you have a pen and paper?"

"Er, sure," Slater shrugged, handing the items to the older Salvatore "Here."

Damon nodded "Thanks." He leaned down and gave it to Luna, ruffling her hair "How about you draw something for Ric, huh? He's feeling bad about what happened."

"Okay," the four-year-old nodded, concentrating solely on the paper on the ground. She was so focused on making it a nice drawing for Ric. Luna felt bad that he blamed himself… It was Elena's fault, not his. She only looked up at her uncle when she heard them discussing werewolves. Why couldn't they just stop? Maybe she should tell him about what's going on with her and the wolves. Suddenly, she heard something jingle and blinked. Where was this coming from? Her gaze turned to the window and she startled. There was the man… Elijah. The man from yesterday. When he noticed her looking, his finger pressed to his lips with a small smirk. Luna flinched and dropped the pen to the ground.

"Little moon?" Damon frowned, looking down at his niece "Damn… I completely forgot about your reaction. Come here." He grasped her under the arms and lifted her into his lap "Sorry about that. Luna always reacted a bit… oddly to the mention of werewolves. So, if we make the moonstone useless, would it stop the curse from being broken?"

Slater shrugged "Well, yeah, probably, but why would you want to do that?"

"Tell me how," Damon demanded.

"You think I'm gonna help you figure out how to do something that will piss off an Original?" Slater scoffed "And keeping them from walking in the sun?"

Damon raised an eyebrow, not noticing that Luna was staring out of the window with wide eyes "You want to walk in the sun? I can make that happen if you help us."

Luna saw the coins flying towards the window and turned away at the last second. The glass rained down on her head and she buried her face in Damon's shoulder. Slater and Rose's skin started burning. Damon grabbed Luna's hand, putting her on the ground. With the other hand, threw his jacket over Rose, ushering the two girls out of the back with the other customers.

"You're gonna be okay," Damon murmured, tilting up Rose's face to look at the healing burns.

"I know," Rose sighed.

The older Salvatore frowned "Who's behind that?"

Rose shook her head "I don't know. Where is Slater?"

"Iowa by now," Damon shrugged "Who the hell knows? Come on, Luna. Let's get you buckled in."

"He's not behind this," Rose called, turning around to face Damon while he helped his niece "He's a good guy, he wouldn't betray me."

The older Salvatore rolled his eyes "Who did it?"

"It's Klaus," the female cried desperately "Don't you understand? You don't know this man, we're dead, we're all dead."

They were on the way back when Damon turned around to check on Luna again, only to see that she was passed out again, curled in her seat. It was a favoured position for her, being curled into a small ball. Kind of like a sleeping puppy or something.


	10. 2x10 The Sacrifice

Damon glared at Rose suspiciously. Just because they slept together didn't mean that he necessarily trusted her "If anything happens to Luna while I'm gone, you're dead." Both he and Stefan wanted to go and talk to Katherine. There were some things that they were sure to learn from her. Since they didn't know how long it would take and neither of the brothers wanted Luna close to the bitch, there was only this one option. Rose.

The female vampire held up her hands in surrender "If I hurt her, I'll let you kill me. I'm really sorry about what happened with the Doppelgänger. I didn't mean for a child to get roped into this as well."

"It's not me you have to convince," Damon smirked "If you get my niece to like you, you're alright in my books."

"Don't worry too much," Rose smiled "I promise that Luna will be safe with me."

"Good. I'll be back later." The oldest Salvatore got up from the bed, walking over to his closet to change into his clothes for the day "Oh, also… Luna has nightmares sometimes. If she wakes up, she won't go back to sleep."

Rose nodded "Alright. Anything else?"

Damon thought for a moment before shaking his head "Nothing that I can think of at the moment. Luna can tell you if she needs anything herself."

"Are you ready, Damon?" Stefan called from downstairs. The older Salvatore glared at Rose again warningly before rushing down to join his brother.

As soon as she heard the door close, the older vampire sighed. She really was sorry about scaring the little girl but there was nothing she could have done. It was Trevor's idea to kidnap the Doppelgänger instead of just telling Elijah where she was. Hopefully, Luna would forgive her for that… Rose always loved spending time with children. The problem was that she barely had time to do it since she was turned. Being on the run from Originals was everything but easy.

It only took ten minutes until light footsteps could be heard, padding in the direction of the room she was in. When the sound of sniffling reached her ears, Rose hurried to get dressed before Luna came into her uncle's room. Better not to scar her more than the four-year-old already was.

"Where's Uncle Dami?" a quiet, tear-filled voice questioned from the doorway.

Rose smiled at the blonde girl "Your uncles had to go and take care of something. I hope you don't mind staying with me until they get back?"

Luna studied the vampire in front of her curiously. Sure, she had been a part of kidnapping Elena but the young girl could see that it wasn't the woman's fault. No one could have known that her uncle's stupid girlfriend would drag her along and get kidnapped. In the end, Luna just shrugged and padded closer to the bed "What's your name? I forgot…" she mumbled in embarrassment.

"My name is Rose," Rose smiled, scooting to the side to make some space for the four-year-old "Did you have a bad dream?"

Luna gave a tiny nod "It was the bad man who hurt my momma."

Rose blinked "Bad man?"

"Yes," Luna breathed, curling in on herself. She had promised her momma never to talk about him but she was scared. What if he came back? He was already haunting Luna's dreams. She didn't want him to hurt her new family as well.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

The blonde girl shook her head "Not 'llowed. Never allowed," she sighed, staring at the bookshelf opposite of the bed, a blank look in her eyes. Her momma taught her that promises were important. That she had to be hon… honoble… that one word… and try as hard as she could to always keep them. Tears filled her eyes again and she buried her face in her hands. She missed her momma so much. Uncle Dami and Uncle Steffi were really nice and she loved them dearly but her momma had always been there for her, protected her as best as she could. Even from the bad man. The bad wolfman hurt her momma and he hurt her before he just left them.

Rose glanced down at the four-year-old and closed her eyes. Something had happened to the girl… Something that she was sure, no one wanted her to have gone through. The bad man… In her experience children rarely insulted people. Especially, children as young as Luna. They mostly saw the good in everyone and forgave pretty quickly. For the small child to call someone a 'bad man' he must have done something horrible "Hey," she called out quietly, getting the girl's attention "How about we make some breakfast? I'm sure you're hungry?" Luna shrugged but crawled closer to Rose, pouting up at the older vampire with her arms raised a little. Rose cracked a grin. The little one really was adorable and she could see her becoming a real beauty in the future. Not that she wasn't already but she would grow from adorable to beautiful in a few years. Rose was sure of that "You want me to carry you?"

"Maybe," Luna nodded, tilting her head, pout still firmly on her face. She squealed when she was lifted into the woman's arms and wrapped her legs around the other vampire's waist. Luna continued giggling as Rose raced down the stairs and to the kitchen. She loved speed and Uncle Dami rarely allowed her to run around like she wanted to. There were always people at the house who didn't know.

The two girls had a lot of fun baking pancakes together and by the end of breakfast, Rose had a new friend. After the earlier bout of shyness yesterday, she was surprisingly open and soon they were talking about anything and everything. Okay, not everything but the topic varied from favourite colours to family and Rose even told the little one about some historical events she witnessed.

"Wait here," the older vampire mumbled when they heard uneven footsteps coming through the front door. It wasn't a vampire who came in… So Damon and Stefan were out of the equation. Who else would just walk in here without knocking? Luna slid from the chair she had been sitting on and quietly followed Rose. She stayed behind, ready to hide if she had to but from the sound and smell of the person, it was only Elena "There's no one here," Rose spoke up, causing the Doppelgänger to jump in fright.

"Actually, I came to talk to you," Elena pointed out.

Rose raised an eyebrow "I'm all ears." She walked over to the couch and flopped down, spreading her arms for the little girl to come to her. Oh, she had known that Luna was following her but it was also obvious that the little one was at least cautious enough to stay back until they were certain that there was no threat. During the Doppelgänger's story, Rose smoothed her hand over the child's silky blonde hair "It's a bad idea."

"No," Elena snapped "It's not. From what Stefan told me, your friend Slater obviously has more information about Klaus. You and Damon just gave up before you got it."

Rose gaped at the teenager for a moment. Was she serious? "Because somebody blew up the coffee shop with us in it," she pointed out.

"There's more to learn," the Gilbert girl argued "We just have to find a way to learn it."

"Why are you coming to me with this?" Rose squinted, a bad feeling spreading through her body.

Elena glanced down her nose triumphantly "Because you owe me. One word from me and Damon and Stefan could have killed you for kidnapping me."

Luna tensed against the older vampire. She really didn't like the girl and wouldn't mind taking a bite out of her. There were only a few people that she actually bit… Most of the time she would drink from blood bags or her mother would allow her to drink her blood. Elena thought that she was so important to her uncles but the only reason they were still helping her was because they were seeing the other one in her. The one who looked the exact same way.

"Or maybe it's because you know that they wouldn't want you doing this," Rose rolled her eyes "And their moonstone caper gives you a chance to sneak away."

Elena stiffened "We're having a disagreement, okay? They're willing to risk everyone that I love and I'm not."

Rose sighed "They're just trying to protect you." Under her breath, she added "Although why I wouldn't know. You did get their niece kidnapped." Luna looked up with a small grin and burrowed her head in Rose's side. She was really starting to like the older vampire.

"And you've proven that you couldn't care less whether I'm protected or not. So, we're back to you taking me to Slater."

The vampire shook her head "I can't do that. There's no way I'm taking Luna and I promised to take care of her until Damon gets back."

"Just drop the brat with Ric," the Doppelgänger waved off "Or leave her here. No big deal."

Rose inhaled sharply. If she thought the Doppelgänger wasn't like Katerina, this was definitely her proof that she was wrong. Elena was just as selfish, if not more so than Katerina "I'm not leaving her by herself."

"I can go to Ric…" Luna mumbled quietly "I wanna give him his picture."

"The picture you were drawing at the coffee shop?" Rose blinked "Oh, so the teacher is Ric?"

The four-year-old nodded "Can I go? Please? Uncle Dami wouldn't mind."

Rose rubbed her forehead and glanced from the smug teenager to the little girl "Sure. If it's okay with Ric. Not as if I have another choice. You're sure that he'll take care of you?"

Luna nodded enthusiastically "Ric is nice. He takes care of me a lot. But I think he is sad because I got taken when he was watching me."

"Oh," the vampire choked out "Er… How do I get in contact with him then?"

"I'll call him," Elena offered, pulling out her phone from her pocket. After a minute, she grinned "He's still at school but he said that we can drop her off there."

Rose was still unsure about the whole situation "I don't know. What do you want from Slater anyway?"

Elena looked at her "How would you like to be able to walk in the daylight?"

"I've been a slave to the shadows for five hundred years, what do you think?" the older woman sighed, running a hand through her hair in defeat. She really didn't have a choice but to take the girl to Richmond. Figures. Free from Katerina, bound by another – someone who has the same face nonetheless "Fine. Let's go then."

Luna barely had time to grab her drawing before Elena shoved her towards the car. Rose didn't know what to do but stayed silent for now. She would tell Damon as soon as she saw him again though. Both him and Stefan had a right to know who they were protecting and how that person was treating their niece.

"Out," Elena ordered once they arrived at the school.

The four-year-old didn't say anything when she slid out the door. She only paused when Rose frowned "Aren't you going to make sure that she gets to Ric?"

"If you want to then go ahead," she shrugged.

The vampire glanced at the little girl and to the school building. There was no way that she could get out of the car without burning. Dammit. How did she get into situations like these? First Trevor practically painted a target onto their backs and now this. Oh, Damon was going to kill her. Slowly and painfully "I'll be okay, Rosie," Luna assured "Dami dropped me off before. I know the way to Ric's classroom."

"Fine," she sighed "Be careful and stay with this Ric until your uncles come to pick you up, alright?"

The blonde girl nodded and threw the car door shut. The faster she was away from Elena the better. She didn't hold grudges… Well, not normally but she really didn't like the older girl. She hurt Uncle Dami and Steffi wasn't much better. Why did he defend Elena after what she did to Luna?

"Luna," a voice called out, getting her attention. Her head snapped around and she ran towards the man who called her. Ric was standing outside of the History classroom, waiting for her to come closer. Once she reached him, he dropped to his knees, ignoring the students around them "I'm so sorry, little one. I…"

"I made this for you," she murmured, handing him the drawing with her face buried in his neck.

Alaric laughed lightly "This is very nice. Thank you." He stood up, holding Luna in his embrace tightly. He wouldn't make the same mistake again. Even if she didn't blame him, he would never forgive himself for not watching Luna. She got kidnapped because he was so busy with Jenna.

When Damon got the phone call from Rose he was furious. Didn't he ask her to take care of his niece? Instead, she ran off with Elena and possibly dragged Luna into another situation. He drove as fast as he could to Richmond, storming up to Slater's flat.

The younger of the two vampires glared and when he didn't see his niece anywhere, his stomach dropped "Where's Luna?"

Rose looked at him, willing him to understand with her eyes. She didn't have a choice "She's with the teacher... Alaric or something? I didn't think you would approve of me bringing her here."

"She's with Ric?" Damon relaxed, pulling out his phone. For the moment, he had completely put Elijah and the whole Klaus fiasco out of his mind and was focussing on finding out how his niece was doing. He didn't want to admit it but Rose had done the best thing possible. If she had brought Luna along, he wasn't sure what he would have done but one thing was certain, he was going to kill Elena one day if she didn't grow up ' **Is Luna with you?** '

Not a minute later he got a response ' **Yeah, why? Didn't you drop her off?** '

' **No. Apparently, the person I asked to look after her decided to take Elena out for a little field trip.** '

' **So that's why Elena texted me. I thought it was a bit weird…** '

"We are going to talk about this later," Damon threatened, looking at Rose intently "Now, you two are coming back with me. No more suicide shit." Not only did he not want to spend any more time in this flat, he also wanted to make sure that Luna was alright and he wanted to know what happened. Rose looked as if she didn't want to be here in the first place… What did Elena do? Damon frowned at his thoughts. Elena wasn't Katherine though, was she? She wouldn't have blackmailed someone to get what she wanted. Would she? Over the last few weeks, he had seen her in a different light. It was as if having Luna live with them, opened his eyes to her faults. She wasn't the perfect girl he thought she was but there was no way she was as cruel as Katherine was either, right?


	11. 2x11 By the Light of the Moon

Alaric walked into the Grill with Luna on his hip. He had been taking care of her since she showed up at the school yesterday. Damon had visited for about an hour but then he asked his friend to look after the little girl for a while longer. Not that he minded. The teacher saw Jenna sitting at one of the tables, looking depressed "What has you looking so down?"

Jenna's head snapped up and she smiled at the duo "Hey, Ric. Luna. How is my favourite four-year-old."

"Good," she bounced "Uncle Dami asked Ric to take care of me."

Ric and Jenna exchanged looks over the little girl's head "I'm not quite sure what he planned but it's Damon, so…?"

"Ah," the older woman nodded and stole Luna from Ric's arms, settling her on her own lap "About your question… I'm apparently playing historical society hostess to some writer who's doing his book on small-town Virginia."

Alaric blinked "Well, that sounds…"

"Lame?" Jenna offered, tickling Luna's sides. She really liked the little girl. For some reason, the four-year-old could wrap almost everyone around her little finger. First, big bad Damon, Stefan, Ric… They were all suckers for her "Yeah, but Carol Lockwood played the 'dead husband' card, said she was too busy to deal. Plus, my sister kept most of the archives, so there you have it."

"Want a little helper?" Alaric questioned, gesturing to Luna "Damon wanted to do something and I'm not sure if I want to know… Better she's safe with you."

Jenna looked at her boyfriend for a moment and then down at Luna "Is that something you would like to do? Helping out a friend in need?" Luna looked up at her with wide eyes, not really knowing what the two adults were talking about. She blinked a few times and nodded with a tilted head. The two adults snickered at the look and Jenna got up "Well, then." The older woman quickly kissed Ric goodbye and left with Luna in tow "So, let's go meet this mysterious writer." She buckled Luna into her car and took off to Lockwood Mansion where Carol said they would wait.

"Jenna," Carol smiled as soon as the two stepped through the door "Thank you for doing this… Hi, Luna, right? What are you doing with Damon's niece?"

Jenna ruffled the little girl's blonde hair "Babysitting."

"Not a baby," Luna huffed, glaring up at the older woman.

"Fine. I'm looking after her for Damon… Or rather Ric. Men, you know?" Jenna rolled her eyes and looked around "So where is the guy?"

Carol startled into motion "Right. Mr. Smith is in the living room. Please." She lead Jenna and her small aide through the foyer and into the living room where Elijah was waiting "Elijah, this is Jenna Sommers. Jenna, this is Elijah Smith."

"Nice to meet you, Ms. Sommers," Elijah greeted with a small smile, his eyes flashing to the four-year-old at her side. Now that he knew the truth, he couldn't unsee his little brother in her. How Rosemarie hadn't seen it, he didn't know but on the other hand, he was grateful. The fewer people knew, the safer she was. The Original had to admit that she was cute though… Perfect and unique.

"Mr. Smith," Jenna shook his hand "Please call me Jenna."

"Then you may call me Elijah." The Original looked at Carol and smiled "It was nice to meet you, Mrs. Lockwood."

Carol nodded "Elijah."

Once Elijah, Jenna and Luna were outside, the vampire turned to the little girl, crouching down "Hello, there."

Luna peaked up at the man for a second before her gaze returned to the floor. This was the same man who killed the vampire. When she and Elena got kidnapped. She really wasn't sure what to think about him. On one hand, she felt uneasy but then there was also something about him… It made her feel at home "'lo."

"Let's get to mine," Jenna spoke up, resting one of her hands on Luna's head "Everything should be there."

All the way to the Gilbert's residence, Elijah glanced over his shoulder at the girl… his niece. This is going to take some getting used to. He wanted to get to know her, to get close to the little one but… Elijah doubted it was going to be easy. Especially if she had anything to do with those two vampires who killed him.

"Come in," Jenna gestured once they were at the front door. Luna immediately skipped off to the living room where some of her toys were still stashed from yesterday "The files are in here. Hold on." She opened the closet, rummaging around in there "Make yourself at home. I just need to look through this stuff."

Elijah nodded and immediately headed to the living room where his niece was playing with some toys. Before he could say anything, the little girl was up and in one of the corners of the room "Well, I guess that answers that question," the Original mumbled to himself "I don't want to hurt you, Luna. It was Luna, wasn't it?" The blonde tilted her head curiously and nodded "What were you playing just now?" He sat down on the sofa, trying to appear less intimidating. Luna crawled towards her toys carefully, ready to run if she needed to. She pointed to the floor where some boards were lying along with letters "You're learning to read?"

"And write," she whispered shyly.

Elijah smiled "And how is that?"

Luna shrugged lightly "Momma showed me my letters but they were hard… Now, Uncle Dami helps."

"You're a smart little girl, aren't you? How old would my lady be?" Luna giggled at the half bow the Original did and held up four fingers "Four? So you're a big girl already."

"I think I found it," Jenna called over to them and Elijah groaned internally. Really? Now?

He got up and ruffled Luna's hair "It was nice talking to you, princess." With that, he left her in the living room and walked out to join the older woman.

Luna just continued to spell and sound out the letters. At least she hoped that it was the right way. The words were relatively easy like 'fish' and 'frog', so there wasn't much she could do wrong… Not anymore at least. After another twenty minutes, Jenna came into the room "Come on, love. Let's get you to your uncle, hm?"

"Yeah," the four-year-old exclaimed, abandoning her game in favour of running to the older woman. As much as she liked Jenna and Ric, she really wanted to go back home.

Jenna laughed "Well, then come on." She scooped the small child up and strapped her into the backseat again. It wasn't even a question of where Damon could be. There was only one possibility and that was the Grill.

"Where is she?" Damon demanded, whirling around in the parking lot.

"Uncle Dami," Luna shouted, rushing towards her vampire uncle. The oldest Salvatore froze and caught the little one when she threw herself into his arms "Missed you, Uncle Dami."

Alaric was standing next to Jenna but when Damon looked at him, he came over "So we're just letting her get away?" Damon hissed at the man "'You've been marked'". What the hell kind of wolf throw-down crap is that anyway?"

"Damon, look up!" the teacher murmured "Just look up." The vampire did so and after a moment Luna followed suit "If this werewolf stuff is true, one bite and you're dead. One bite! Alright? Don't risk it. Just go home, lock your doors and we'll deal with it in the morning."

The oldest Salvatore looked down at his niece and then back at Ric "Yeah. I'll see you."

"Sure. Bye Luna."

"Bye, Ric," the girl waved, laying her head down on Damon's shoulder.

The vampire smiled "So, how was your day?"

"Cool. Ric took me to the Grill and then I went with Jenna and then there was 'Lijah… He is a writer…"

"Woah, woah," Damon cut her off harshly "Elijah?" Luna nodded, her eyes wide "Dammit. I don't want you to talk to him, alright?"

The four-year-old pouted at her uncle "But…"

"No buts, Luna," he replied firmly "You'll stay as far away from him as you can." He put her down at the front door and walked into the house, locking the door behind the two of them. Once he was in the living room, he stopped, staring at the person standing in front of him "You just can't stay away, can you?"

Rose rolled her eyes "You don't answer your phone."

"What do you want?" Damon sighed.

"Rose," Luna called, attaching herself to the female vampire's waist.

Rose smiled down at the blonde girl and patted her head "Luna. How was your time with… Ric?"

"Fun," she grinned.

"I wanted to apologize, Damon," the older of the two vampires murmured "I'm sorry about Luna and I'm sorry for listening to Elena. She… There's something I have to tell you about her."

Damon raised his eyebrow "And what would that be?"

"Elena… Do you know how she treats Luna?" Rose questioned carefully.

"What do you mean?" the oldest Salvatore frowned, his smug expression dropping from his face.

Luna tugged at Rose's jacket, hoping to stop her from telling her uncle. She didn't like Elena but she didn't want to get her into trouble either… "From what I've seen the Doppelgänger seems almost… verbally abusive at times. She constantly glares at Luna, calls her brat. I can only tell you what I've seen so far but… I don't think that you should leave her alone with Luna anytime soon."

Damon gaped at the older vampire for a moment before he fell to his knees in front of his niece "Luna? Look at me, little moon." When she didn't do what he asked, he grabbed a hold of her child gently and raised her head "Is that true? Did Elena really do what she said?"

Luna bit her lip, chewing on it uncertainly "Yes," she breathed after a few moments.

Suddenly, there was the sound of glass breaking from the kitchen. Damon lid in front of Luna and Rose as the window shattered and a wolf lunged into the living room. The oldest Salvatore grabbed a sword that was hanging on the wall and swung it "Protect Luna," he commanded. What happened next, left him speechless though. Rose pushed him out of the way just as the wolf jumped, throwing her on the floor. Damon stabbed the sword forward but not fast enough. The wolf had bitten down on the older vampire's shoulder. As soon as it was gone, he knelt down "How bad is it?"

"It hurts," Rose hissed.

Damon watched the bite mark heal "It's healing." Then a low whimper reached his ears "Luna." He whirled around to search for the girl "Luna? Where are you?" There was another whimper coming from underneath one of the side tables of the sofa. Within a second Damon had his niece in his embrace, shushing her gently "It's alright, little moon. The wolf is gone. See?" Luna didn't answer, instead, she buried her face in her uncle's neck and started crying. She hated the full moon. She hated it. It was the time when the bad man hurt her momma worse. He didn't believe in locking himself up, so he roamed the house. Sometimes he caught her or her momma and hurt them "Let's get you to bed, hm?"

"You bring her up," Rose told him "I'm going to change."

Damon nodded, carrying the crying four-year-old to her room. For once, he didn't try to get her changed or to brush her teeth. She was way too upset. After he tucked her in, he sat next to her, carding his hand through her long locks "It's alright, Luna. Please… Stop crying, okay?" Damon was a bit out of his depth at the moment. Ever since Luna had started living with them, she was a happy child. There has never been a moment where she cried as much as she did now and he didn't know what to do? Oh, what the heck…

" _You are my sunshine, my only sunshine_

_You make me happy when skies are grey_

_You'll never know dear, how much I love you_

_Please don't take my sunshine away_

_I'll always love you and make you happy_

_If you will only say the same_

_But if you leave me and love another_

_You'll regret it all someday_

_You are my sunshine, my only sunshine_

_You make me happy when skies are grey_

_You'll never know dear, how much I love you_

_Please don't take my sunshine away._ "

When he was done, Luna had stopped crying for the most part and actually fallen asleep. There were still some tears falling from her eyes "Goodnight, little one."

"That was good," Rose complimented quietly, leaning against the doorway.

"Thanks," Damon smiled slightly "I wasn't sure what to do, so… yeah." He got up after pressing a kiss to Luna's forehead. With one last look, he closed the door quietly and left the little girl to sleep.


	12. 2x12 The Descent

It was not even an hour after she fell asleep that Luna was up again. She slipped out of her bed and padded over to the window. She had a nightmare and since there was no one else awake in the house, she contented herself with staring out into the dark woods outside of her bedroom window. It had always been like that since she was old enough. Whenever she had a nightmare, she would always calm herself down and just stay awake until her mother arrived. Luna's momma had enough problems and sleepless nights without her daughter adding to them.

The next morning, Luna attached herself to her Uncle Damon, not leaving his side, even as he got a blood bag for a sick Rose. The older vampire had gotten worse after the previous night and so far nothing had helped.

"I was born in 1450," Rose murmured, looking up at the two Salvatores "That makes me 560 years old."

Damon smirked but there was concern hidden in his eyes "Well, if you were a bottle of wine…"

"So I can die. I've lived long enough," the female vampire continued.

"You know, if you're gonna be morn, I'm just gonna kill you myself just to put me and Luna out of your misery," Damon rolled his eyes as he poured the blood from the bag into a glass "Come on, it's just a little werewolf bite."

Rose snorted "Just a little, fatal to a vampire, werewolf bite." She glanced at Luna who hadn't spoken a word since she attached herself to the younger vampire, slightly concerned about the faint outline of circles under her eyes. Maybe she should have insisted that someone stayed with her last night…

"Well," the older Salvatore hummed "According to a legend which is a notoriously unreliable source. Drink up." He gave Rose the glass of blood "Blood heals."

She sipped at the thick, red liquid "Yeah, it does feel like it's working."

"Let's have a look," Damon clapped, setting his niece down on Rose's lap "Come on. Let me see." He blinked at the bite mark and grimaced. It got worse and actually spread further down her back. Maybe there was something to that legend after all…

Rose tightened her arms around the four-year-old "How is it?" There was a huge amount of trepidation in her voice. She was aware of what happened to vampires who were bitten. The older vampire saw it a few times already.

The older Salvatore took a deep breath "Definitely… better. Right, Elena?"

"Um," the Doppelgänger stuttered "It's not bad." It was obvious to all of the people in the room that she was lying and that's definitely saying something.

Damon looked at her with a raised eyebrow "Where's Stefan?"

"He left," she shrugged "I need you to talk to him. He's convinced that he has to find Isobel but I think that's gonna upset Elijah."

"No can do," the older of the brothers shook his head "I'm with Stefan on this one but if you could play nurse and babysitter for a little while…"

Rose looked up at the younger vampire in shock. She had told him that Elena was on the verge of being abusive to his niece and he wanted her to look after the little one? Was he crazy? "It's not necessary."

"It is necessary," Damon argued "Elena is a do-gooder. It's in her nature, she just can't resist." Under his breath, he added, only for Rose and Luna to hear "I'm gonna give you a recorder. If she says or does anything to Luna, record it. It's the only way. Please?" He pressed a small recorder into the older vampire's hand and kissed both of his girls on the forehead before leaving.

An hour later, Elena helped Rose to Damon's bedroom, where she snuggled into the covers "I hate this," Rose groaned "I'm a vampire, I haven't had a cold in five centuries."

"Just get in bed," Elena snapped and glared at Luna "Get her some more blood. Hurry up, brat." Luna stared at the Doppelgänger silently for a moment before she glanced at Rose who nodded. Within a few minutes, she was back with a full blood bag.

"Thank you, little one," Rose smiled before turning to Elena "You've never been in Damon's room before, have you?" She glared at the other girl a bit but all in all, she was pretty good at hiding her dislike "Not what you expected?"

Elena huffed "It's just a room with a bed. Maybe I expected there to be silk sheets."

Rose breathed out "I'm so tired," she mumbled, falling asleep a second later. Before she did though, her finger pressed the record button of the device Damon had given her.

"Get up, brat," Elena snapped, wrapping her hand around the tiny arms of the young girl. The Doppelgänger insulted the little girl some more and when Luna didn't comply, she hit her in the face "Hurry it up. Rose doesn't need you in here. She feels bad enough already."

She was pulling the girl with her to the door when Rose started speaking in her sleep "No, stop, wait. Tell them to prepare the horses… Trevor, don't be stupid. You're never going to make it there before the sun." Suddenly she sat up, her face contorted in pain "Luna, Luna, I need more blood."

"Yeah, here," Elena murmured, giving the vampire the glass of blood. She ignored the fact that the four-year-old was standing next to her anxiously. Luna was exhausted but she was scared to go to sleep and never see Rose again. She was scared that Rose would leave her and Uncle Dami like her momma did. Just after Rose had gulped the blood down, she threw everything back up "It's okay." Elena rushed to the bathroom, dragging Luna with her, handing the little girl a rag.

Back in the room, Rose was gone and Elena frowned. She turned to see Rose behind her. When the vampire pounced Elena had just enough time to shove Luna into the feral vampire's way, causing Rose to rip into the little girl's throat "It's all your fault, Katerina," Rose snarled, dropping the unconscious girl to the floor, cracking the Doppelgänger's head against the wall. Elena's eyes rolled back into her head and Rose blinked a few times. She tilted her head in confusion, looking around the mess in the room. What happened? Why couldn't she remember what happened?

"Luna," the older vampire gasped, falling to her knees next to the four-year-old. She carefully turned the girl, only to see the huge wound on her neck, healing much quicker than it should "What…?"

"Rose?" the groggy voice of Luna mumbled.

"Oh God," the vampire whispered, pulling the girl into her arms "I'm so sorry, Luna. I – I didn't mean to hurt you."

Luna blinked up at the woman her uncle liked "'s okay," she smiled, patting Rose's cheek gently "You were hurt. Are you better now?"

Rose tilted her head in confusion "Yeah. I'm… I'm feeling much better now. How…? I should be dying." She glanced at Elena when she groaned and quickly grabbed Luna under her arms. Rose sped out of the room and into the library, the tape clutched in her hand. Once the two of them were comfortable, the vampire quickly listened to the tape and growled in anger "Let's go and call Damon, hm?"

" _Rose?_ " Damon answered on the second ring " _Is everything alright?_ "

"I'm fine, Damon," the older vampire replied "For some reason. I don't understand it… But you need to come home right now. I… The tape. I was out for a bit and I just listened to it…"

The older Salvatore was silent for a moment before he let out a sigh "I'll be there as soon as I can.  _But you're feeling better, right?_ "

"Way better," Rose assured "The hallucinations are completely gone and my shoulder feels healed. I really don't know why I'm healed but… Oh, God!"

" _What?_ "

Rose let out a shaky breath "There's only one thing I drank… I'll tell you when you're back."

" _Alright,_ " Damon murmured " _I just need to take care of something._ "

A minute before his phone rang, Elijah walked up to Damon and demanded for the two of them to talk.

"What can I do for you?" Damon smirked, raising an eyebrow at the suit-clad Original. He didn't like Elijah much but the man was stronger than him and even though he might do stupid shit, some things were better to be left alone.

Elijah leaned back in the chair he was sitting in "I want to talk about that niece of yours. Luna?"

"What do you want with her?" Damon demanded, his smirk falling from his face.

The Original held up his hands "Relax. I don't plan on harming her," he promised "There's a… certain resemblance between someone I know and Luna."

"Her father?"

"Yes," Elijah nodded "Now, he's not someone I wish to contact at the moment but I feel like you need to know if you continue to care for the child."

Damon nodded "I… appreciate that. Would you mind relocating though? There are too many ears here." He glanced at the bar where the werewolf – Jules – was still standing, watching him and the older vampire with a sneer and then to his little brother.

"Rose?" Damon called, walking into the Boarding House with Elijah and Stefan in tow. The younger of the two brothers had insisted on coming along as well, even though his focus was mostly on Elena. He still loved Luna and would do anything for her. The female vampire appeared from the kitchen with Luna securely on her hip. The four-year-old looked worse for the wear and Damon immediately scooped her up into his arms "What happened?"

Rose shifted nervously and nodded at Elijah in greeting "Well, I… I was hallucinating. Instead of Elena, I saw Katerina and I wanted to hurt her. I don't remember everything but I think the Doppelgänger shoved Luna at me… I bit her. I'm so sorry, Damon. I didn't know what I was doing… But after that… I was fine. It's weird."

Elijah stepped forward and gestured to Rose "May I?"

"Sure," the woman nodded and pulled her shirt to the side, revealing the place where the bite mark should have been.

"Doesn't the girl remind you of someone?" the Original pointed out, probing the skin carefully "Look closely."

Rose frowned at the man in confusion before she did what he asked. She gasped as soon as it clicked "I thought she reminded me of someone… I just… How is this possible?"

"I do not now," Elijah murmured "But I plan on finding out. It would explain why your bite is healed though."

Stefan cleared his throat "Can someone please tell us what you're on about? And where's Elena? I thought she was here?"

"You're girlfriend took off," Rose shrugged, not bothering to sound like she cared "Before we go into the subject of the bite… Here." She threw the recorder to Damon, who pressed play as soon as he held it in his hand.

The three male vampire got angrier the more they heard and once the sound of a slap sounded, Damon snapped. He sat down on one of the couches and pressed the four-year-old close to his chest "You should have said something," he whispered "Had I known that the bitch would go that far…"

"She's more like Katherine than I thought," Stefan sighed, running a hand through my hair "Thank you, Rose. For showing me this…"

"What does this mean for you, brother?" Damon questioned, looking up at his younger, bunny-eating brother.

Stefan shrugged "I don't know. I can't and don't want to be with someone who is selfish enough to hurt a little girl just because she gets more attention. Maybe… Maybe we should let her deal with her own problems Focus on Luna…" Damon smiled at his little brother, feeling like this was the guy he wanted to have as a brother. The older Salvatore wasn't stupid. He just preferred to hide his feelings and observe the people around him. He prodded Luna and gave her a gentle push in the direction of Stefan. The younger Salvatore brother scooped her up and smiled as Luna giggled "So… About her father?"

Elijah sighed and sat down in an armchair "What I'm about to tell you now is a bit of a story. I had someone confirm the identity of her father with some hair I got before you killed me." Damon raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything "Her father is my younger brother. Now, what you have to understand is that he is… different."

"Different how?" Stefan frowned, playing with his niece's hair gently.

"My brother is a born werewolf. We only found that one out after our mother turned us into vampires though…" the Original explained "You heard about him."

Rose leaned into Damon, grabbing his hand "Klaus. His brother… your niece's father is Klaus."

"Is that why he needs Elena and the moonstone?" Damon questioned, putting two and two together "There's never been any talk about a Hybrid, so obviously something happened."

Stefan smiled at his brother "And there's the Damon I know. Hey, I'll get Luna to her room and then I think there's more we have to discuss." The others nodded and ten minutes later, the four-year-old was tucked into bed, drifting off already. The nightmare coupled with everything else that happened that day was enough for Luna. What no one could have predicted were the nightmares though. The wolf, the half-feral Rose that bit Luna, her momma's death. Every bad memory came to the forefront of the little one's head once she fell asleep and started haunting her sleep.


	13. 2x13 Daddy Issues

Not five hours after Stefan put Luna to bed, the adults had retired as well. The news that Elena was worse than Katherine had hit Stefan hard and Damon still had to get used to the idea that Klaus – the Klaus who wanted to kill Elena – was his little moon's father. What was he like? Would he be a good father to her? He wasn't sure what he would do if Klaus tried to take Luna from him. She was his little girl and even though he only found out about her not too long ago, he loved her so much already. All of them did.

"Luna?" Damon squinted at the hunched up, shaking figure in the doorway "What happened, little one?" She didn't reply, only sniffled some more "Come here. Do you want to sleep with us?"

"Yeah," she breathed, stepping closer until her uncle could reach for her. With his hand under her armpits, he quickly lifted her up and placed the little girl between him and Rose.

As soon as Luna was settled, Rose opened one of her eyes in confusion "Luna?"

"It's alright, Rose," Damon murmured "Luna's just sleeping here tonight."

"Kay," the older vampire hummed, going back to sleep.

The next morning, the Salvatores dropped Luna off at Alaric's because she still wasn't up to much. While Luna slept more or less peacefully for a few hours, it wasn't enough for her to be fully rested. There were faint circles under her eyes and she looked like she was about to fall asleep any minute.

"What happened to her?" Ric whispered when Jenna started fussing over the child.

Damon ran a hand through his hair "Rose attacked her by accident and it seems as if Luna's having nightmares. She won't tell me about them though."

"Have you tried?"

"Ever since I noticed her having them," Damon murmured "I really don't know what to do anymore."

Alaric patted his friend's shoulder "Don't worry too much. She'll tell you about them. You just have to be patient."

The vampire nodded "Alright. Listen, I have to get going now. Please take care of her?"

"Always," Ric smiled, closing the door behind him to join the girls in the living room "So, what are we doing?"

Jenna looked down at the quiet girl next to her "How about we watch something, hm?" She grabbed the remote and switched on the TV, quickly finding a channel that was child appropriate.

"Jessie?" Ric raised an eyebrow at the screen and pinned Jenna with an 'Are you kidding me?' look.

"Come on," she grinned "Just try it, why don't you? Oh, and we're going to the Grill later." Alaric relaxed in his chair and sighed. He could survive a few hours of a child's show. Maybe. Probably. Oh, he couldn't believe he was doing that.

Two hours later, Alaric was leaning forward, wanting to know what happens next. He glanced over at the girls to see Jenna running her hands through a napping Luna's hair. The little girl was shifting and her face was twisted slightly in pain "Maybe you should wake her up?"

"She needs the sleep," Jenna argued.

"But having nightmares isn't too restful," Alaric pointed out "Should we go to the Grill now?"

The older woman was rubbing the whimpering girl's back "Luna. Come on, little one. Wake up?" Ric picked the half-awake four-year-old from the couch and carried her to his car. He had gotten a car seat a few days ago, so he didn't have to borrow Damon's all the time. It made things easier.

"I can't believe it," Jenna exclaimed a while later when they were having their lunch. Luna had just pushed her food around on the plate and was currently drifting off again, not really eating anything but the adults were too lost in their conversation to notice "Elena is my sister's husband's brother's daughter and her mother is my boyfriend's deceased wife. You can't make this stuff up."

Alaric grimaced "It's definitely a little overwhelming."

"I can't believe that they kept it a secret. How is it even possible to keep a secret like that?" Jenna complained, looking over to the door when it opened "Urgh."

"Hey, you two… Three," John greeted "Do you think I can join you?"

The woman rolled her eyes "Do you have to?"

"I guess I don't," the guy shrugged "But I might as well. Look who's here."

At that moment, Damon and Rose – who had gotten a daylight ring form Elijah that morning – strolled up to their table "John, buddy, how have you been?"

John fixed the vampire with a fake smile "I've been alright, Damon. It's good to see you. Who is your… friend?"

"That's Rose. Rose, John Gilbert. Elena's father," the oldest Salvatore introduced, picking up Luna from where she was sitting and held her on his hip with Luna's head resting on his shoulder. John threw his another fake smile, walking off in the direction of the candles "Stay here," Damon murmured to Rose and followed the other man "So, John. Rumour has it that you know a lot and won't say anything."

"How do I know you can be trusted, Damon?" he challenged "Originals can compel vampires. And, according to Stefan, that's why Katherine's still in the tomb. Because an Original has compelled her to stay there."

Damon shrugged with the shoulder that didn't hold his niece's head "Only because all of the vervain had left her system. Stefan and I, on the other hand, are chock full."

The Gilbert gaped at the vampire in surprise "You guys are drinking vervain?"

"It's an acquired taste," Damon grimaced "I don't see that magic little ring on your stitched finger, so if you know something about Klaus, you better start talking, or I will kill you in your sleep." There was no way he would let John know about Elijah and who Klaus was to Luna. No. To everyone else, he was still firmly on Team Elena's side. As was Stefan.

"Is that any way to convince me that you and I are on the same side? First, I need to know that I can trust you, Damon, that I can count on you. Then we'll talk." With those words, the man left the vampire with only a quick glance at the little girl that was so comfortable in the irritating vampire's arms.

Damon sighed and looked up when Rose stepped to his side "Should I take her home? Maybe get her more comfortable?"

"That would be good, I think," the oldest Salvatore nodded "If it's alright with you, I'll stay here a bit longer."

Rose leaned up to press a kiss to his lips "Sure. I'll make sure to stay with Luna," she whispered, stealing the four-year-old from his arms "Be careful and I'll see you later."

"See you later, love."

It didn't take long for Rose and Luna to reach the Boarding House. The older vampire had glanced back at the little girl every minute or two. She just wished that Luna would talk to someone about what happened. Not only the last few days but also with her mother or with the 'bad man' she kept mentioning "Let's get you to a bed," Rose murmured, lifting the four-year-old out of the car seat.

"Is she alright?" a concerned voice came from behind her.

Rose whirled around to see Elijah standing behind her "You scared me," she complained "Thanks for the ring… I appreciate it."

"It's nothing," the Original waved off "Now, about Luna?"

"I don't know," Rose sighed "She had a nightmare tonight. Not that I can blame her and I don't think it's the first time. She's just too exhausted for it to be the first night of nightmares."

Elijah frowned "Why does she have nightmares?"

Rose shrugged, walking into the Boarding House and up the stairs, the Original following behind her "Luna won't tell anyone anything. And it's not for the lack of trying." She placed Luna on the bed in Damon's room and snuggled up next to the girl. Maybe it helped her to have someone to comfort her while she's sleeping.

"Then we have to find out," Elijah murmured "She'll tell us…" His phone beeped and he glanced at the screen "Excuse me. There's something that requires my attention."

A few hours later, Damon walked through the front door and immediately sped up to his room where his two girls were sleeping. He smiled and quietly left the room. That's when he heard a car door close outside "What do you want?" Damon snapped, seeing John Gilbert on his front step.

"We didn't finish our conversation," the man pointed out.

"I'll bite," the vampire sighed and reluctantly stepped to the side "Be quiet though, my niece is a light sleeper."

John nodded "I've been thinking. Personal feelings aside Damon, I think you and Stefan will do all you can to protect Elena."

"I agree with that statement," Damon nodded emotionlessly.

"So I come bearing gifts," the human grinned, opening a folded cloth. Inside was a silver dagger and a jar full of white ash.

The Salvatore frowned "What is that?"

"This is how you kill an Original," John explained "In this vial is ash from a white oak tree that dates back to the genesis of the Originals. The dagger must be dipped into the ash and then plugged into their heart."

Damon froze for a nanosecond. He'd have to ask Elijah about that later on… For now, he had to lock his mask in place as he took the items "How do you know all this, John?"

"Isobel," he shrugged "She's very good at finding out things. But, of course, you know that."

"Where is Isobel?"

The Gilbert smirked "Let's just say if she accomplishes what she's attempting, Klaus will never set foot in Mystic Falls. Where Elena's concerned, you and I are on the same side." With those words, he patted the vampire on the shoulder and turned around to leave.

Damon sighed and dropped onto the couch behind him once John was gone. This was in equal parts good and bad. Good because he now held the weapon that could harm Elijah and bad because he was putting himself and the others in a bad situation. Maybe he should talk to Stefan about this later. Yes, that was something he should do.


	14. 2x14 Crying Wolf

Luna once again woke up in her Uncle Dami's room with Rose on one side and Damon on the other one. She didn't want to be a burden on them but another part of her was glad that she didn't have to be alone.

"Morning, little moon," Damon smiled from the doorway, walking over to scoop the girl up "I know you don't want to talk about your dreams but sooner or later you have to talk to us."

Luna looked up at him, tears filling her eyes "But…"

"No buts," he murmured "It will help you. I don't have a problem with you sleeping with Rose and me but you really should talk to someone."

"Okay," Luna whispered, biting her lip. She put her head on Damon's shoulder and clutched at his neck.

The older vampire set his niece down on the counter and handed her a glass of blood to drink "There's a Historical Society Tea Party Thing. Elijah's going to be there and since I have to talk to him, I'm gonna go. It's up to you whether you come with me or stay here with Rose."

"What's with me?" Rose questioned, padding into the kitchen. She still looked ready to fall back asleep but smiled thankfully when Damon handed her a blood bag "Thanks."

"I was just telling Luna that she could come with me to the Historical Society thing or stay here with you," Damon told her, leaning against the counter next to his niece.

Rose grimaced "About that. I thought about going to visit a friend today… If you don't mind that is."

The younger vampire tilted his head "Why would I mind? It just means that I'll take Luna with me. You're entitled to your own life after all."

Rose grinned and pecked him on the lips before turning to ruffle Luna's hair "Great! I'm just gonna get ready then. It's a long drive."

"Have fun and be careful, would you?

The older vampire let out a suffering sigh "I'm way older than you, Damon. I can take care of myself."

Twenty minutes later, the three of them were standing by the door, saying goodbye to Rose when Alaric showed up "Hey, Ric."

"Rose," the part-time Hunter nodded, stepping aside to let her pass "So, what did you need to talk to me about?"

The Salvatore lead his friend to the living room, waving for him to sit down. After Alaric was comfortable, Damon threw the dagger down on the table between himself and Ric "So, John Gilbert gave me this to kill Elijah." He unwrapped the cloth "Said you have to dip the dagger in the remains of an old white ash tree that dates back to the Originals. No, don't touch it, Luna." The four-year-old froze, her hand still reaching out. She looked from the dagger to her uncle before climbing onto the couch next to him.

Alaric watched the two of them in awe. It was fascinating how much the little one changed the vampire. Damon had been an ass to everyone before and now his focus was mostly on protecting Luna "What are you going to do with this?"

The vampire shrugged "Well, I'd have to talk to Stefan first to see what he wants to do but Elijah is alright and he's Luna's family, so…"

"Wait, wait," Ric cut him off "What do you mean 'family'?" The teacher was aware of the fact that Luna needed blood to survive and that she was part vampire but he didn't know that the others had found out who her father was. Did that mean that Elijah was?

"Haven't I told you?" Damon blinked in surprise "I could have sworn that I told you… Anyway, we found out who Luna's father is two days ago. Apparently, the Originals are all siblings and Elijah's younger brother Klaus is her dad."

Alaric gaped "As in the Klaus who is after Elena? What happened to protecting her?"

The vampire shifted in his seat and glanced down at the little girl next to him "I have seen what she's like… I'll tell you more but not now."

"And Klaus? Is he the one?"

"Yeah," Damon nodded and stood up when Stefan entered the house with Elena trailing behind him "Perfect timing, Stef. We need to talk." The older brother passed Luna to his friend "Hide the dagger. I don't want Elena to know. I'll be back in a few minutes."

As soon as Damon and Stefan were out of the living room, Elena excused herself to go to the bathroom. Ric had a suspicion that she wasn't going there but he still had to look after Luna and make sure that the dagger was in a safe place. Ten minutes later, the Doppelgänger stormed past the open doorway, slamming the door behind her "Well," Alaric murmured to Luna, who looked up at him "I think your uncles are in trouble. Nothing new there."

An hour and a half later, the two Salvatores met up with Alaric and Jenna at the Historical Society Tea Party. When they entered, Elijah was speaking to Carol, glancing around inconspicuously. Jenna raised her eyebrow at the vampire "Damon, what are you doing here?"

"Just wanted to meet the new writer in town," Damon shrugged, approaching Carol and the Original with Luna following him.

"Damon," the Mayor smiled.

The vampire nodded at her "Carol."

"What a surprise," she hummed "And Luna. I wasn't expecting you here." She looked up at Elijah "Elijah, I want you to meet Damon Salvatore and his niece Luna. His family is one of Mystic Falls' Founding Families."

"Hmm," Damon smirked at the other vampire "Such a pleasure to meet you."

Elijah's lips twitched in amusement "No. Pleasure's mine."

"I need to talk to you," the younger vampire breathed under his breath. The Original nodded and excused himself from Carol, walking in the direction of a room. Damon crouched down "Luna, I want you to go to Ric and stay with him while I talk to Elijah, alright?"

"Yes, Uncle Dami," she smiled, skipping over to the vampire Hunter who lifted her onto his hip, letting her wrap her arms around his neck.

As soon as the door shut behind the two vampires, John Gilbert's voice sounded from next to the two of them "What's Damon doing with Elijah?"

"How would I know?" Ric rolled his eyes in annoyance.

"Because you're his little helper," John pointed out and stepped closer "And if you don't know maybe I should just ask that little one you're holding there."

Alaric glared at the other man "Leave her out of it. You don't like Damon but that doesn't give you a right to use children."

"Does Jenna know about your extracurricular activities? Maybe it's time we tell her," John threatened "I mean, she can't stay in the dark forever."

The teacher tightened his grip on the girl in his arms "You're a dick."

"I don't think you should sleep over anymore," the man advised "It's inappropriate with children in the house and that ring that Isobel gave you, that's mine. I'm gonna want that back." Alaric smiled smugly at John while he walked away, the smile turning into a sneer before it dropped.

That evening, Damon and Alaric were sitting in the Boarding House library, drinking bourbon while Luna was resting against Damon's chest, curled in his lap "Today was a bust," the vampire sighed.

"Yeah," Ric nodded in agreement "You didn't tell him?"

"I didn't think it was a good idea to talk about this with John nearby…" Damon shrugged "Elijah's coming here later.

Ric pulled out his phone out of his pocket and glanced at the time "Oh, God. I got to go. I got to pick Jenna up. Don't worry." He stood up and gestured to the four-year-old in the vampire's lap "I'll show myself out."

Damon relaxed on the chair with Luna on his lap until he heard a loud, crashing sound from the hallway. He looked down at a frightened Luna and held a finger to his lips "Go to the kitchen. Hide and don't make a sound. Hurry!" He shooed her away and walked out into the hallway.

Luna pressed herself against the wall next to the doorway, listening to the sounds in the hall. There were several bangs and grunts before she heard a body hit the ground "Whew," an unknown male voice exclaimed "Damn, you're strong. It took the whole syringe." More steps came over to them "Grab that one. He's dead." The girl's eyes filled with tears and she pressed a hand to her mouth. Don't make a sound. Keep quiet.

"Hi, Damon," a woman – that was the wolf. Luna recognized her voice from before "Nice to see you again."

She listened to the werewolves dragging her uncle and Ric around, risking a quick peek into the living room. Luna couldn't hold back the gasp at the picture of Damon chained to a chair with a collar around his neck.

"What was that?" the woman demanded, turning her head in the direction of the kitchen "Check it out."

Luna's head snapped to the door that lead out into the garden. The footsteps were coming closer and closer. Before they could fully reach her hiding place, she flashed to the door and outside. The little girl ignored the shouting behind her, she just kept running. She ran until she reached a street where a black car was driving in the direction of the Boarding House.

"Luna?" Elijah frowned when he saw his niece stumbling along the road without shoes "Why are you out here, sweetheart?"

"Uncle Dami," she sniffled, tears running down her cheeks "Werewolves hurt him 'Lijah."

The Original froze for a second before he pulled his car to the side and into the tree line. Within a minute, he had scooped Luna into his arms, running to the Salvatore Boarding House. Once there, he held a finger to his lips, making the small blonde nod and clutch his collar tightly, Elijah entered quietly, hearing the female wolf demand "Where's the moonstone?"

Damon chuckled but the Mikaelson could hear the masked pain in his voice "Get over it, honey. You're never gonna get it."

Elijah set his niece down, grabbing her tiny hand in his "You looking for this?" When everyone turned to face the pair, they strolled to an end table where the old vampire placed the moonstone. He stepped back, pushing Luna behind his back "Keep your eyes closed," he breathed to her and turned to gesture to the stone "Go ahead. Take it."

Let's just say the next thing the four-year-old saw were the bodies of several wolves on the floor "Dami," she shrieked, throwing herself at her still bound uncle.

"I need you to come here for a second, sweetheart," Elijah commanded, ripping the chains as soon as she was out of the way.

The oldest Salvatore immediately gathered his niece into an embrace "Shh, little moon. You did well." He looked up Elijah "How did she find you?"

"She ran into me. I was already on my way," the Original said "You said you wanted to talk to me about something?"

Damon closed his eyes for a moment "Yeah. Just… Give me a moment and we'll join you. I want to take care of Luna first."

"I can do that," Elijah offered "While you tell me what's going on here and where's your brother?"

The younger vampire sat Luna down on the couch, making space for Elijah to sit on the coffee table "John Gilbert. Elena's father… He gave me a silver dagger yesterday."

The Original looked up at him sharply "If you plan on killing me, I'm afraid that's not the way to go."

"I don't want to," Damon burst out "I'm not that stupid and Luna likes you. That counts more than Elena's safety. Especially, since she hurt my niece. I just wanted you to know that I had the weapon that could supposedly kill an Original and had no plan on using it."

The Original blinked in surprise "Thank you?"

"I'm doing it for Luna," the younger vampire grunted out "You deserve to get to know her and I…" He glanced at the half-asleep girl "I hoped that you might be able to talk to her about… about her nightmares. She's not talking to us."

Elijah ran a hand through the hair of Niklaus' daughter and nodded "I will try."


	15. 2x15 The Dinner Party

"Stefan." Damon picked up the phone, looking in the fridge at the same time. It was just about empty. Great…

" _What's going on?_ " the younger of the brothers' questioned. He was outside the Gilbert Lake House where he spent the night with Elena. It wasn't his favourite past time but they had to act normally for a while.

Damon flashed upstairs when he heard the soft padding of Luna's feet "Luna just woke up and the fridge is empty."

" _I thought you went shopping yesterday,_ " Stefan snorted.

"I forgot, okay?" the older Salvatore sighed, running a hand through his hair. He smiled down at the four-year-old who was blinking up at him tiredly "Dammit…"

Stefan closed his eyes for a moment " _You planned to have a bit of a dinner party with_ _Elijah_ _, Ric and Jenna, didn't you? Just_ _go out to the Grill now and shop for it later. Simple…_ "

"Alright… I did hear one piece of news though." He picked up Luna and sat them down on the couch "Tyler Lockwood ran away from home last night."

" _How do you know?_ " Stefan blinked.

The older vampire put his brother on speaker "Well, I heard it from Sheriff Forbes, who heard it from a very distraught Carol Lockwood. You continue with your ruse and I'll try to get this over with."

" _Be careful, brother and make sure that Elijah gets to talk to Luna. I know you're listening, little one. You really have to tell someone, even if you don't want to."_

"Yes, Uncle Steffi," Luna mumbled, curling into a small ball. She really didn't want to talk at all but they hadn't stopped pestering her about her nightmares. And maybe she would actually feel better after talking about her bad dreams? Maybe they could help her feel safer…

After the younger brother hung up the phone, Damon turned to his little niece with a smile "Do you want to go to the grill with me? We're meeting Rose and Ric there."

"Yeah," Luna nodded quietly, speeding up the stairs and to her room. She was still wearing her pajamas.

An hour later, the four of them were sitting at a table in the middle of the Mystic Grill. The adults only had drinks in front of them but Luna had a plate with pancakes and fruits as well as a big glass of chocolate milk. Damon had been a bit worried when he noticed that the little vampire's appetite had decreased about as much as her sleep had. If it got any worse, they would have to do something against it. That's also why he was banking on Elijah. If the Original could get it out of Luna then he would allow him to see his niece as often as he wanted. Hell, he would trust the Original with his little niece. Not that he didn't already… to some degree at least.

"Other than your lecture on the history of Mystic Falls, how was it?" Damon raised an eyebrow at Ric.

The History teacher groaned and rubbed his forehead "It was boring. Of course, Jenna thinks he's charming."

Damon let out a little laugh "You sounded jealous. Sound a bit jealous?" he questioned his girls, frowning when he saw Luna pick at her food. The oldest Salvatore put his hand on hers, making her look up "Don't play with your food. Eat it." She sighed and stuffed a bite of pancake into her mouth gracelessly.

"There are Elijah and Jenna," Rose pointed out, getting the men's attention "Hi."

"Hey, guys," Jenna waved when she and Elijah stopped next to the table. The woman pulled up a chair, while Elijah leaned against the booth next to Luna, stealing one of her strawberry pieces.

Damon smirked at the Original. While they got along pretty alright, the younger of the two enjoyed teasing Elijah "So I hear you two had quite a meeting of historical minds today."

"Yeah, I guess you could say that," Jenna nodded, stealing her boyfriend's drink.

"Listen, Rose and I thought about hosting a dinner party tonight. Just to get to know each other better. Especially since you and Luna are family," Damon murmured, nodding to the little blonde when she looked up wide-eyed.

Elijah bowed his head "It would be a pleasure. Damon, would you mind if I steal Luna until this evening?"

"I – I don't…" Rose put her hand on the younger vampire's arm and whispered something into his ear "Sure," he sighed finally "I'm sure I don't have to tell you to be careful, do I?"

"Indeed not," the Original smiled lightly and crouched down to look at Luna "How about the two of us spend the day together while your uncle and Rose prepare for tonight?"

Luna bit her lip and glanced from her Uncle Dami to Rose and then to Elijah before she nodded and pushed her plate away "Okay." Elijah scooped up his brother's child and nodded to the other four. Now the hard part was beginning. While he had always gotten his younger siblings to talk, he had known them for the better part of a millennium. Luna, on the other hand, was just a child… A child he only met a week ago.

Once they were in his flat on the outskirts of town, Elijah sat his niece down on the couch opposite of his favourite armchair "I know that we don't know each other too well but there's something that I'm going to have to tell you."

"Is it about what Dami said?" Luna questioned, tilting her head curiously.

The Original blinked "You really are pretty smart, aren't you? Yes. Your uncles already know but I'm your uncle as well."

Luna frowned "How?"

"Your father is my little brother," Elijah told her.

"You know who my father is? Momma never told me… How do you know?"

Elijah transferred from the armchair to the coffee table right in front of his niece "A friend of mine did a test. With magic. That is how I got confirmation about who your father is… To be honest, I suspected it. You look just like my brother did at that age."

Luna chewed on her lip thoughtfully. Did she really want to know who her father was? After all, he didn't care enough about them to stay. According to Maria, she tried to tell him and he accused her of lying and just left. The bad man came after that when Luna was three "Steffi told me to talk to you."

"Talk about what?" Elijah prompted. He knew that they would have to talk about her nightmares and her mother but he wanted Luna to say it.

"The bad man?"

The Original frowned "Who is the 'bad man'?" He hoped that it had nothing to do with Niklaus because if he had done anything to this sweet girl then Elijah would really have to go through with his plan of killing him.

"He hurt my momma and me," Luna mumbled reluctantly "Don't know his name anymore but he was a… a… I…"

"Vampire?" Elijah questioned, earning a head shake "Werewolf?"

The four-year-old nodded "Yeah. He turned and hurt us on some nights. He was bad."

"Is that what you have nightmares about?" Elijah asked, pulling the little girl into his arms.

"Yes," she admitted quietly "And momma leaving. And Dami and Steffi and Rose. I'm scared, 'Lijah."

The old vampire smoothed his hand over the blonde hair "We're here for you, Luna but we can't help you if you don't talk to us. I'm sure that no one will leave you. You're stuck with Damon, Stefan, Alaric and me. Trust me," he whispered "You'll curse it soon."

That got a little giggle out of the girl. She cuddled into his chest and twisted her hand in his suit jacket. In some way, Luna was actually feeling a bit better. She told 'Lijah a lot of what happened and he still treated her like he always had. And he was her uncle? Three uncles and Ric and Rose, even Caroline. Speaking of the other blonde. Luna hadn't seen her in a while… Maybe she should ask Uncle Dami.

The two spend the rest of the time until the dinner party reading quietly. Elijah was reading from 'The Hobbit'. Normally, he wouldn't read books like these more than once but he thought that Luna would enjoy it and she definitely did. After the first chapter, she was completely enraptured by the story. The Original had to explain a few words to the little girl but other than that, she listened quietly, occasionally trying to read out the next word.

About half an hour before they wanted to leave, Elijah's phone rang with a text message from the Doppelgänger ' **Can you come over? I really need to talk to you about something.** '

' **Where to?** '

The response came immediately ' **I'm at my families Lake House. It's down the road that leads to the lake. Can't miss it.** '

Elijah sighed and resigned himself to go to the Doppelgänger before he could go to the Boarding House. Ever since he heard the recording of Elena, he was less enthusiastic about protecting the girl. She didn't deserve it and to be honest, he was looking forward to the ritual. Niklaus deserved to have his curse broken, no matter that the two brothers were at odds at the moment. Elijah should have never helped their father that day but if he hadn't… He shuddered to think what Mikael would have done… That man was a monster and deserved the title of father as much as Esther deserved the title of mother.

"Luna," Elijah murmured, getting the attention of the girl "We have to go and see Elena before we can get you back home. Is that alright?"

The four-year-old hesitated "Uncle Dami said I wasn't allowed near her."

"I'll take care of you, alright? You'll be fine," the Original soothed "Just stay close to me."

"Okay," Luna shrugged and went to snuggle back into his chest.

Elijah poked her in the side "None of that. We have to go now."

"Then I don't want to," she whined lightly "Comfortable."

"Up," he demanded playfully, setting his niece on her own feet "Let's go then."

The drive to the Lake House passed quickly and soon Elijah and Luna were standing outside of the Original's car. They were about to walk towards the door when his phone started ringing "Damon?"

" _Huge problem, Elijah,_ " the younger vampire panted out, sounding out of breath " _I can't find the dagger or the ash. They're gone._ "

Elijah stiffened, gripping the four-year-old's hand tighter, walking in the direction of the front door "What do you mean 'gone'?"

" _Just that. Alaric hid it and it's not there anymore. I have no idea where it could be and Stefan hasn't seen it either,_ " Damon muttered angrily " _I'm so sorry about this. It shouldn't have happened._ "

"Don't worry about it," the Mikaelson sighed "It's not your fault. I'll just have to be careful… Give us half an hour and we'll be there."

Damon nodded " _Alright. I hope it went alright for you today._ "

"It did. Thank you for the opportunity," Elijah smiled, hanging up the phone. He turned around, only to feel a sharp pain in his chest. With the last bit of his strength, he looked down at his chest to see the silver dagger poking out of his body. The Original fell to his knees in front of the Doppelgänger and everything went black to the sound of Luna's begging.

The little girl threw herself down next to her new-found uncle and reached out a shaking hand for the dagger. Elijah had turned grey and veins were all over his face… He looked dead "'Lijah…"

"Don't touch that," Elena spat, manhandling the child away from the dead vampire on the floor. She pulled Luna over to the house where her father was waiting for her "It's done. Can you get him inside?"

John nodded and went outside to drag the Original into the house and down to the basement "What are you planning on doing with her?"

Elena rolled her eyes "She knows too much. Just lock her into the room next to Elijah for now. We'll figure out what to do with her later."

"She's only a child, Elena," her father argued quietly, taking a hold of the girl nevertheless.

"She's the reason why Stefan and Damon are mad at me. If it wasn't for her, everything would be fine," the Doppelgänger scoffed.

John sighed and nodded "Alright. But we can't just keep her here…"

"Make it seem like Elijah ran away with her or something. There must have been a reason why he was with her in the first place," Elena pointed out.

Luna struggled against the man's grip, tears running down her cheeks "Let me go."

Elena sneered and backhanded the child "Be quiet brat. Just be glad that you're still here."

John dragged Luna down the stairs and pushed her into a dark room without any lights. He looked at the small child for a moment, before he closed the door and locked it twice. Neither Elijah nor this… Luna would get out of here for the time being. At least this way, he had repaid some of the debt he owed his daughter. With that thought, he left the basement, never looking back.


	16. 2x15 The Dinner Party Two

Luna was curled in one of the corners of the room, holding a hand to her aching cheek. Elijah was dead. Her uncle was lying in another room, with a dagger in his chest. The four-year-old swallowed nervously and crept towards the door. She tilted her head, listening to the footsteps that were upstairs. It was only one uneven pair of footsteps. Elena. The only person who was in the house with them was the Doppelgänger. Luna pulled at the door, hoping that it would give. When it didn't she pulled harder, making the lock break. The small vampire blinked at the broken lock and shrugged, walking over to the only other door. It had to be the place where Elijah was… They said he was in the basement as well, right? Luna pulled at the door and was surprised that it opened immediately. She rushed over to her uncle and quickly pulled the dagger out.

It took maybe ten minutes for Elijah to wake up and when he did, he gasped for air "Need to get out. Not invited in," he forced out. When he went to run out, the Original grabbed Luna around the waist, carrying her up the stairs and out of the door. As soon as he could breathe again, Elijah set down his niece, looking at her closely. One of his hands rested on the bruise that was forming "Who did that? Elena?" Luna nodded and bit her lip "What happened when I was… unconscious?" The four-year-old just shook her head, throwing herself into his arms "No matter," the Original sighed "I'll find out. Do you still have the dagger?"

It only took a few minutes for the Doppelgänger to run out of the Lake House. Stupid move on her part. As soon as she was out of the house, Elijah flashed to her and gripped her throat tightly "Hello, Elena."

"Elijah," she gasped, hands trying to pry off his.

"Who helped you?" the Original demanded, narrowing his eyes on her.

She smirked a bit "You can't compel me."

"Oh, can't I?" he raised an eyebrow. One of his hands ripped away the Doppelgänger's necklace and threw it away like he did when they first met "Who. Helped. You?"

"My father," the girl replied emotionlessly.

Elijah scoffed "I should have known…" He could feel Luna trembling against his back and at this moment, the Original made a quick decision. Since he couldn't kill the wench yet, he had to take care of the problem another way "You will not lay a hand on Luna again. Every time you try to hurt her in one way or another you will stop and you will remember exactly why you are in the situation you are in right now."

"What are you going to do now?" Elena questioned, scared "Please don't hurt my family."

Elijah sneered "A bit late for that, is it? After all, you hurt mine. Don't worry. Your aunt and the History teacher are safe. I can't say the same about your dear father though." With those words, he ran off with Luna in his arms. He had to get to the Boarding House and he didn't want to waste time driving there.

"Elijah? Luna? Where were you?" Stefan questioned when the two came into view. The younger Salvatore brother had volunteered to wait for the missing pair outside. The less time he had to spend around John Gilbert, the better. The other man had shown up maybe half an hour ago and acted like he owned the place.

Elijah handed over Luna to her other uncle and walked past the younger vampire "Not now, Stefan. I have a bone to pick with Mr. Gilbert. He is here, I assume?"

"Yes," Stefan nodded, following the Original inside "Hold on… Jenna is here as well."

"I don't care," Elijah bit out "It's about time she finds about all of this anyway. Don't you agree?"

Damon and Alaric came into the hallway and stared at the slightly ruffled looking Original in confusion "What happened?"

"I was daggered," Elijah pointed out "Now, where is John Gilbert."

Alaric exchanged an alarmed look with both Salvatore brothers and pointed to the living room "He's in there. Been pretty smug about something…"

Elijah flashed past them and had John by his throat in no time. Jenna screamed in surprise when the other man was suddenly across the room "Hello, Mr. Gilbert. I take it you're surprised to see me again?"

"How?"

"I have my ways," the Original smirked, dark veins creeping up under his eyes "Now, you have made a powerful enemy."

John paled "I only did what I had to… I want to protect Elena."

"And by daggering me, you have made me angry. But hurting an innocent little girl? You know, I could call Klaus here right now. How long do you think your precious daughter will last once he knows that there's a Doppelgänger?" Elijah threatened.

"No, don't," the older Gilbert pleaded "She – It was my idea to dagger you."

The Original rolled his eyes "But it was Elena who slapped Luna. Klaus will know that there's a Doppelgänger soon anyway. Your daughter will die whether I tell him or not. Have fun with the knowledge that you lost any help I would or would not have given you."

Meanwhile, Jenna had hurried over to Luna when she saw that the girl was clinging to both Damon and Stefan tightly "What happened?"

"Elena happened," Damon growled, his eyes flashing red for the shortest moment.

The human gasped "Your eyes. What's going on?"

"Jenna," Ric started, scratching the back of his head uncomfortably "I – There's something I should tell you. Not here and now though. Tonight, if it's alright?"

"Does it have anything to do with the stuff John has been implying?" Jenna raised an eyebrow.

Alaric shrugged sheepishly "Maybe?"

"Fine," the woman sighed "If you don't tell me the truth though, you can go to hell."

"Fair enough," the teacher nodded.

Damon tugged at his niece's hair lightly, making her look up at him through tear-filled eyes "Are you better now?" She nodded quietly but tightened her hand in the vampire's shirt "Come on little moon. Rose is upstairs. I'm sure she'll stay with you until I come to bed as well."

"She's still sleeping with the two of you?" Alaric sighed in concern.

Damon nodded and ran a hand through his hair "I'll be done in a minute. Then we'll talk about this."

"Alright," the part-time Hunter nodded.

It took a bit longer than a minute to get Luna settled with Rose. The older vampire listened to the abridged version of the story with a deadly look in her eyes "If she wasn't important to Klaus I would… Urgh!"

"You and me both," the oldest Salvatore sighed "Are you alright up here?"

Rose smiled at him "Sure. I'll call if anything happens. Go on."

Damon leaned forward and pressed a sweet kiss to Rose's lips and another one to Luna's forehead "Sleep well little moon."

Back downstairs, John was gone and Elijah was calmly sipping some brandy that Stefan had given him. The only indication that anything happened was the torn and bloody suit the Original was wearing. Damon was about to open his mouth to ask what exactly happened but Elijah held up his hand "What happened will never happen again. I'll not be that stupid again. With what happened with Katerina, I should know not to trust a Petrova again."

"Alright," Damon grinned "I won't ask what happened. But there's one thing I want to know… What did Luna tell you?"

Elijah sighed and leaned back in the armchair "She told me about the 'bad man' as she calls him. I don't know names or anything but I found out why she reacts the way to the wolves…"

"You mean the bad man is a…?" Stefan trailed off.

"Yes," the Original nodded "According to her, he hurt both her and her mother frequently. I have a question for the two of you… Alone, if that's possible?" He glanced at Alaric and Jenna.

The History teacher nodded and pulled Jenna up with him "We need to talk anyway." Under his breath, he added "Wish me luck. Hopefully, I'll still be alive tomorrow."

Damon snorted at his friend's dramatic exit and rolled his eyes "What's your question, almighty Original vampire who got daggered by a teenage girl."

"You young vampires," Elijah sighed jokingly "No respect for your elders. Anyway, there's something off. I understand that Luna isn't a werewolf. Since Niklaus' werewolf is locked away and I assume that it transferred to his daughter. But she should have gotten magic from our family. My mother was a very powerful witch and even two of my brothers had the gift."

"I think there was something," Stefan frowned "Hold on." He quickly flashed upstairs and into Luna's room. They had put her mother's journals into the girl's room. It helped her to feel closer to her mother. He quickly leafed through them until he found what he was looking for "Here," Stefan murmured when he flashed back downstairs. He handed the open journal to Elijah and watched him read.

"A ritual?" the Original blinked "I thought it would be something like this… This doesn't say a lot though… Only that Luna's magic was locked away to protect her. A girl her age without any help around… It would have been a disaster. I don't know how to reverse it though." He looked up at the two brothers "If I ever get my siblings back… Kol can help. He was always the most involved in the magical community. My youngest brother was considered a prodigy when we were still human."

"So wait," Damon spoke up, his head tilted to the side "Luna is part human and part vampire now. She also has a werewolf and witch side locked away?"

"Just about," Elijah nodded "She probably has to trigger the werewolf gene like everyone else, so there's nothing to worry about for a while. I can't see Luna killing anyone."

The two Salvatores sighed in relief "Alright. Thank you, Elijah. You really helped a lot already… There's just one favour that we want to ask of you…"

"What is that favour?"

"Don't let Klaus take her away from us?" Stefan spoke up "She's our family as well…"

Elijah was divided. On one side, he wanted his niece to be with her real family but on the other side, the two brothers, Rose and even Alaric had taken care of Luna so far "I'll see what I can do. But I promise you this. There will always be a place in her life for you. Even if Niklaus is against it… I'll make sure that you get to see her if worse comes to pass."

Damon smiled at the Original thankfully "We appreciate it. Now, you should probably go and change… You still look a bit… Dead?"

"I probably should," Elijah agreed, standing up "Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Elijah."


	17. The Beginning of the End

When Caroline arrived at the Boarding House it was anarchy. A quiet kind of anarchy but still a bit of a fight. Damon and Stefan were glaring at a confused Katherine and Luna was off to the side, snuggled against another female vampire. Rose if Caroline got the name right. Elena had bitched about her quite a bit… The blonde vampire had been a bit busy with Tyler, Matt and controlling her bloodlust, so she hadn't seen the little Salvatore in a while. She blinked at the scene for a good two seconds before she walked over to Rose "What's going on here? Oh, I'm Caroline, by the way. We haven't officially met yet."

"Rose," the older vampire introduced herself "As for what's going on… I don't really know. Katerina showed up because she thought that Elijah was daggered and they've been fighting ever since… Right, Luna?"

The little girl looked up and that was when Caroline could see the beginning of bags under the child's eyes. There was also a hint of red on her cheek left "Yes," she mumbled and went back to hiding her face in Rose's stomach. She didn't even acknowledge Caroline which made the girl wonder. They got along pretty well the last few times the two had been around each other, so what changed?

"Don't mind her behaviour," Rose sighed, running a hand through the girl's hair "She had a rough couple of days and the Doppelgänger didn't help."

"Elena?" the blonde vampire tilted her head "Why?"

Rose looked up at her "Well, Elena thought it was a good idea to hit Luna yesterday. That and she locked her into a room after seeing Elijah get stabbed."

Caroline gaped. Her friend did that? Actually, it didn't seem that off at all. Elena had changed so much since Stefan and Damon came into town. That was also the reason the blonde kept hanging out with Matt and Tyler, Stefan occasionally instead of Bonnie and Elena. The witch still hated her for getting turned into a vampire, while Elena was just acting weird. She hadn't really been the same "You know, somehow I'm not surprised," Caroline sighed and sat down on Luna's other side "I'm so sorry for not being there recently," she whispered to the four-year-old. Luna smiled lightly and grabbed Caroline's jacket in her hand. The girl had missed the young vampire but there had been so much going on. The nightmares, the bad man… Elena… All of that was a bit too much for the young child. She was tired, just so tired.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Damon shouted and everyone turned to look at the human Doppelgänger "You're not welcome here."

Elena straightened and glared at the oldest Salvatore "Where's Elijah? I need to renegotiate our deal."

Much to everyone's surprise it was Katherine who scoffed "You're kidding, right? I might be on Elijah's bad side but I know better than to think he would consider helping you after what you did."

"Katerina is right," Elijah's voice sounded from behind the Doppelgänger, making Katherine squeak and quickly disappear out of the door "Your ability to make demands has long passed."

"Please, Elijah," Elena pleaded "I was just trying to protect my family."

The Original arched an eyebrow, putting down the blood bags he was holding "By daggering me. While I'm not happy about that I would have understood. Your behaviour toward Luna is unacceptable though. She's just a child."

The human Doppelgänger groaned and rolled her eyes "What is so interesting about a little girl that everyone suddenly freaks out? She's useless…" That was the last thing she could say before Damon was at her throat.

There was a flurry of activity and Rose turned to look at the two young vampires next to her "I need you to take Luna with you for a while. One of us will pick her up once this situation is resolved… I'm trusting you with this, alright? Don't make me regret it."

"You won't," Caroline promised. She glanced at the scene one last time before lifting Luna into her arms. The blonde couldn't resist tickling the little blonde's stomach for one short moment before she took off "Are you okay, little one?"

Luna nodded, climbing into the passenger seat when Caroline opened the car door for her "Tired," she whispered, rubbing at her eyes.

"How about we watch some movies in my room and you can try to sleep some, hm?" the older girl suggested "It will be like having a sleepover."

"I never had one before," the four-year-old mumbled, glancing at Caroline with a smile. The vampire was glad that Luna was acting somewhat normal again. She wasn't completely back to her excited self but at least this was a start.

Back at the Boarding House, the others had finally gotten Elena to leave. There was only so much danger she would put herself in and staying in a room with both Salvatore brothers, Rose and Elijah was testing her luck a bit too much.

"So, what do we do now?" Stefan questioned, sitting back on one of the couches.

Damon sighed and wrapped an arm around Rose's shoulders "I don't know…" He looked at the Original "As much as I'd hate to do that… Can you contact Klaus?"

"You want to tell him about the Doppelgänger?" Elijah raised an eyebrow. When the younger vampire nodded, he sighed "I can try and contact Niklaus but it could be a bit difficult. There's a way, though…"

"And that would be?"

Elijah ran a hand through his hair "My warlocks… The Martins? Jonas has a daughter who is with my brother right now. That's why they asked me to help them… I could ask him to send a message to him."

Stefan tilted his head "Would that work?"

"I certainly hope so," the Original sighed and pulled out his phone "I will ask him right away."

A little while later, Jonas was standing in the Salvatore Boarding House along with his son, the Salvatores and Elijah "Are you sure about this, Elijah?" Jonas questioned, preparing to send his daughter the message the Original was writing. There were specific instruction on what to tell his brother and what not.

_Ms Martin,_

_I am aware that you have no reason to trust me after what my brother undoubtedly told you about me._

_Tell my brother to come to Mystic Falls. I am willing to hand over the Doppelgänger to him. The Moonstone is also in my possession. Tell Niklaus that the only thing he needs to find is a vampire…_

_Elijah Mikaelson_

"What now?" Damon questioned when the message disappeared in a cloud of fire.

Elijah sat down on the armchair he claimed as his "Now we wait. If I know Niklaus it won't take long… Longer since he doesn't trust me not to kill him but not long."

Stefan tilted his head "And will you try to kill him?"

"I… Do not know. Not on Ms Gilbert's behalf… But he still killed our siblings," the Original muttered "Maybe?"

"I think you should do what you think is right," Rose shrugged when he looked at her "I might not like your brother much but he is Luna's father…"

Damon made a sound in the back of his throat "If he hurts my niece in any way… I'll kill him myself. All powerful Hybrid or not."

"If Niklaus indeed hurts Luna, I don't think you have to worry yourself about him anymore," Elijah pointed out "If he hurts her… He won't ever see her again. I'll make sure of that myself."

"Then we do have a deal, no?" the oldest Salvatore questioned "We don't do anything against Klaus when he comes. We let him do that ritual of him but if anything happens to Luna we're gone."

The Original regarded the younger vampire carefully "You have yourself a deal."


	18. 2x17 Know Thy Enemy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, this chapter turned out to be way too short but... At least it's something, right?  
> Sorry for the long wait. I completely forgot to update AO3 as well... Shame on me, I know...

Greta was leafing through one of the grimoires that she had gotten access to after starting to help Klaus when a piece of paper appeared in front of her. She blinked and hesitated. There were only two people who could send this and she wasn't sure whether she wanted to read what was written there. Finally, she picked it up and opened the note. The young witch read it again and again, not quite believing the words "Klaus," she called, running out of her room "Klaus."

"What's with the shouting?" the Hybrid glared, stepping through the doors to his art room. He hated being disturbed and everyone knew it.

"Here," Greta panted, shoving the piece of paper into his hands "That just appeared."

Klaus' eyes widened in surprise when he saw the familiar handwriting "That's… interesting," he murmured "Leave, Greta. And tell Maddox to come and see me. We'll be going to Mystic Falls and I want him to look around first."

"Are you sure that it's not a trap?" the young witch asked in concern. She didn't want the Original to get hurt. He was… Well, it didn't matter, did it? She just didn't want him to get hurt.

"Are you questioning me, little witch?" the Hybrid raised an eyebrow in amusement "Get Maddox now." Once she was gone, he turned to walk back into his art room, falling onto the couch with a sigh. This wasn't what he expected… Elijah had made his feelings on… Well, everything… pretty certain. Something must have happened for him to change his mind. A Doppelgänger. After what happened to Katerina, he never thought he would be able to break the curse… Of course, that didn't stop him from looking but now? The knowledge that there was a human Doppelgänger in Mystic Falls and his brother was more than happy to hand her over.

A knock on the door made him look up "You wanted to see me?" Maddox inquired, stepping into the room.

"Yes. There's something I need you to do," Klaus explained, laying out his plan. The warlock was to go Mystic Falls to look for a body that the Original could possess. He wanted to have a look around town and make sure that Elijah wasn't planning to kill him. The best way to do this was to hop into someone else, someone who was close to the group.

Maddox nodded thoughtfully "I will get on it." He got up "I'll call you when I find anything… Shouldn't take too long."

"Make sure it doesn't," Klaus warned, waving the man away. He had some thinking to do and it was best done alone.

In the end, it took Maddox three days to call him. It had been difficult for the warlock to catch the man in question – a History teacher by the name of Alaric Saltzman – on his own. He had always been in the company of people. Apparently, the most common people were a little girl, his girlfriend and several vampires. From the pictures the Hybrid had received, he only recognized two of the vampires. One was his older brother and the other was Stefan Salvatore, an old friend of his. A part of him was looking forward to seeing him again. The twenties were his favourite and part of it was because of Stefan and the other part was all the dancing, the parties.

His vampires arranged everything that had to do with the move. The coffins with his other siblings were on stand-by and he was storing another one which he would occupy. Greta would stay behind to take care of the last of his affairs.

After Katherine fled from the Boarding House, she wasn't ashamed to say that she was hiding. Hiding from Elijah and from the others. After what happened with Elena and the dagger, she didn't even want to be involved in any of that. On one of her trips into town, she ran into a man the vampire had never seen before. He had the distinct feel of magic around him and before she could run, her world went black.

When she woke up, she saw the warlock from earlier casting a spell on someone. She squinted at her surroundings. There were two vases, one full of blood and the other empty, lying on its side. Katherine started to get up when she finally saw who was in the chair. Alaric opened his eyes and got up, making the warlock bow "Alaric?" the vampire frowned, trying to understand what was going on. The smile that crossed the teacher's face scared her though and she rushed over to the door, only to be held back by an invisible force.

Alaric slowly walked over to Katherine and started speaking "Zdravei, Katerina." He took her face in his hands "I have missed you."

"Klaus," she gasped, fear trickling into her voice.


	19. 2x18 The Last Dance

Klaus was standing in front of Alaric's closet, looking at the clothes with distaste "Oh… Who is this guy, Safari Sam?" He grabbed two shirts and showed them to Katherine who was tied to a chair behind him "Okay, bad or badder?"

"The dark colours suit you better," the younger vampire pointed out, wriggling in her bonds again. This wasn't supposed to happen. She was supposed to be gone before Klaus arrived…

Klaus hummed "Oh, thank you, honey." He strode forward, leaning down to her level "Okay, pop quiz. The dagger and white ask are in the Salvatores' possession, correct?"

"No," Katherine shook her head "Elijah has the dagger, I believe. Elena used it to dagger him with the help of her daddy."

"But Elijah sent me a note?"

She nodded "Yes. That's because… Well, the Salvatore brothers have a niece. Sort of, in any case. She's just a little kid and for some reason, my descendant has a problem with her. Kidnapped her and locked her into a room. As far as I know, Luna broke out and woke Elijah. That was the last step needed for them to contact you."

"So they really don't want to protect the Doppelgänger anymore?" Klaus blinked in surprise "That is unexpected. Who should I expect to go against me?"

Katherine frowned "The Bennett witch, John Gilbert and Isobel are firmly on the Doppelgänger's side. The Salvatore brothers are too concerned with protecting their niece… Rosemarie is with the older brother… Damon now. The Doppelgänger's aunt and Alaric are also helping them. Not that I can blame them," the vampire Doppelgänger murmured "That girl could kill with her cuteness. Now that I think about it… She always reminded me of someone…" She trailed off before her eyes widened and she stared at the man in front of her "Oh."

"Right," Klaus nodded, put out by her behaviour "Anything else?"

Katherine's eyes were still wide. She had finally seen who little Luna reminded her of. But that couldn't be, right? "Erm… That's it?"

The vampire in Alaric's body got closer, touching the tied up woman's face "Oh, so jumpy," he taunted.

"Please," Katherine pleaded "Just… kill me. I've told you everything I know."

"You see, I don't believe you," Klaus pointed out "What aren't you telling me?" When the vampire just bit her lip nervously, his eyes narrowed "Well, I'll have to get to the bottom of that."

"Why don't you just kill me?"

Klaus looked at the broken woman in front of him and sighed internally "Why should I show you kindness? I've been searching for you for over 500 years." He looked at Katherine for another minute before he shook his head and walked out of the apartment.

Katherine watched as the Original in disguise walked out, her thoughts still on Luna. No… That's impossible.

Right?

At the Boarding House, Luna was curled up next to Elijah on the couch, looking at the book Elijah was reading from. He found the book when he was looking around a bookstore a few days ago and thought that it was an interesting book. A Series of Unfortunate Events… It wasn't to happiest of books but Luna seemed to enjoy it. The two of them stayed in the same position almost the entire morning. Damon and Rose were on an outing, while Stefan was at school. The Original had been tasked with looking after his little niece until the others got back. Not that he was arguing. The more time he spent with Luna, the more he started loving her. It wasn't hard to love the four-year-old. She was easily the cutest child he had been around and compared to other children, she was a quiet child. Luna only cried when she was scared and she obviously learned to keep out of the way. Elijah couldn't be completely sure about that but he imagined the mysterious 'bad man' had something to do with that. If he ever found out who hurt his niece then heads would roll.

"Klaus is here," Stefan announced when he entered the Boarding House with Damon and Rose on his heels.

Elijah looked down at a dozing Luna, running his hand through her hair. He hadn't even noticed her falling asleep but it spoke volumes about her nightly routines. The child wasn't sleeping and neither of the adults knew what to do about it "Tell me what happened."

"He could be anywhere at any time," the younger of the two brothers sighed, sinking into an armchair "Was it a good idea to call him here?"

"I do not know," Elijah admitted "But it's better we help him rather than the other way. You don't want to be against him. How do you know he's here?"

Stefan looked up with a lopsided grin "He compelled somebody at school. Asked Elena to save him a dance."

"I like his style," Damon snorted and went to open the door when somebody knocked. He nodded at Ric when the other man stepped into the Boarding House "There you are."

Klaus in Alaric's body shrugged "Sorry I'm late." He looked around the room, not really surprised to see his older brother here. The little blonde laying on his lap, on the other hand, was. That had to be the Luna Salvatore he heard about.

Before anyone could say anything else, the front door flew open, startling Luna into a sitting position. Elena stormed into the house, spitting mad "Isobel told me what you did. How could you tell Klaus to come here."

"What are you talking about?" Damon questioned smoothly, raising his eyebrow at the Doppelgänger.

"You I understand," Elena ranted and whirled around to face Stefan "But you? Stefan… I'm your girlfriend…"

Stefan took a deep breath "That's before you hurt Luna. Elena… What happened to you? The girl I met on the first day of school… She would have never hurt a four-year-old."

"I didn't hurt her," the Doppelgänger argued "I didn't touch her."

Rose shook her head in disgust "Right. So you didn't push her into my path after that werewolf bit me?" Klaus was watching the interaction curiously. He had no idea what was going on but it seemed that the rift between the Salvatores and the Doppelgänger seemed too great to be mended. Also… Did Rosemarie just say that she got bitten by a werewolf? How was she still alive? As far as he knew there was only one cure and no one but his family knew about it.

"So what? It's not my fault that brat took you away from me," the Doppelgänger hissed out, lunging forward to pull the four-year-old closer by her arm. Luna had gotten up when the yelling started and was about to leave the room when Elena grabbed her.

Luna fought against the older girl, trying to get out of her grip "Let me go, let me go."

"Shut up," Elena snapped, tightening her grip on the small girl's limb.

All of the adults in the room – except for Klaus – were on their feet, waiting for the right moment to either kill Elena or get Luna away from her "Might I suggest you unhand Luna, Ms. Gilbert?" Elijah spoke up, keeping his calm surprisingly well.

Luna quickly sunk her teeth into Elena's hand that was holding him. From their side of the room, Damon could see Luna's face change, veins crawling under her eyes as her teeth sunk in deeper. Before the four-year-old could get a bite in with her fangs, Damon flashed forward, ripping his niece from Elena's grip "Luna…" he scooped her up in his arms and carried her to the kitchen "Get rid of… that, would you?" he called over his shoulder before his eyes returned to the small child in his arms "What did I tell you about biting Doppelgängers?"

"Not to?" Luna spoke up, her voice still shaking a little.

Damon tapped her nose with a small grin "You never know where they've been." The oldest Salvatore ran a hand through his hair "I didn't expect her to react like that."

"I believe neither of us did," Elijah spoke up from the doorway "Are you alright, Luna?" The girl nodded and held up her hands to be picked up. Elijah cracked a smile and walked closer to lift the four-year-old into his arms.

Once they returned to the living room, Rose addressed the elephant in the room "That kinda makes the part of handing her over easier… But what do we do about Klaus?"

"Leave that to me," the older Original murmured.

Damon nodded and wrapped an arm around Rose's waist "Ric, could you take care of Luna for a bit? Just for the night… That way she gets to spend some time with her favourite teacher slash vampire hunter."

Klaus blinked in surprise "Erm… Today isn't good."

"Please, Ric?" the oldest vampire pleaded with a pout.

Rose snorted "Luna is so much cuter than you, Damon. Show him, little moon?" Luna looked up at them, a pout on her face "See?"

Elijah narrowed his eyes on Alaric "Why don't you want to take Luna, Ric?" He had a suspicion but couldn't be sure about it yet. He didn't know the hunter too well.


	20. Klaus

Klaus looked down at the girl who was walking along beside him quietly. What in the world was he supposed to do with her? He had next to no experience with children and they certainly never seemed to like him. Usually, children were too noisy and misbehaved all the time… This girl was easily the most well-behaved child he had seen in a while and so far he hadn't really heard her talk much. The only times were when pleading with the Doppelgänger and talking to the older Salvatore… The one he didn't know – Damon, he thought his name was.

"Ric?" Luna piped up, tilting her head up to look at him "I'm hungry."

"What am I supposed to do about that?" he frowned, thinking about where he could take her to get something to eat. The Hunter's apartment was out of the question since he really didn't want Katerina near the girl… What? No, he didn't want the girl near Katerina… Actually, that didn't sound any better either.

Luna looked up at the man who was normally much warmer to her in confusion. She was hungry, so they would have to go and get some food, right? "Can we go to the Grill?"

Klaus shrugged his shoulders and nodded "Sure. Let's go." He startled slightly when the girl slipped her hand into his, happily skipping along again. She seemed like a curious child… Way too curious for her own good but at least she seemed somewhat cautious about the things that mattered. The two of them walked from where he parked the car at Alaric's apartment to the Grill.

It didn't take them long and as soon as they were inside, Luna immediately started pulling her uncle's friend to one of the booths where a blonde girl was already sitting. Klaus had seen her in class but he wasn't really sure who she was "Caroline," Luna called excitedly, scrambling to get up on the seat next to the other blonde.

"Well, if it isn't little Luna," Caroline smiled, helping the small girl up onto the bench "How did you get… Oh, hey, Ric. Sorry, I didn't see you there."

Klaus blinked internally at Caroline "Hello." She was gorgeous and her smile was infective "Do you mind?"

Caroline shook her head "Not at all. The days I get to spend with Luna are few and far in between. It's not often she leaves Damon's side… Or Elijah's recently." She tickled the four-year-old's stomach, making the girl giggle cutely.

"You're good with her," Klaus remarked, watching the two blondes whisper to each other about nonsense things.

"I really like Luna. She's the cutest," the teenager admitted "It's really fascinating how she has the ability to change people… Although not necessarily for the best." She called to Matt when the boy walked past and quickly ordered a little something for Luna and another drink for herself and Alaric.

Klaus tilted his head "What do you mean?"

"Well," Caroline started, taking a sip from her glass "Damon was a bit of an ass before Luna was brought to them… I was friends with Elena for ages but now? She… I don't know… How could anyone hate that?" She pointed to the little blonde who was munching on her food happily, drawing on some paper that Matt had put down next to her with a small wink. A lot of people had taken to coddling to the girl once they saw her around the town "Elena has done things that I'm not sure anyone can forgive… She kidnapped Luna twice, daggered Elijah in front of her and basically called Luna every name under the sun."

"Wait, kidnapped her twice?" Klaus frowned. He would have thought that his brother and the Salvatores would have made sure that it didn't happen again.

Caroline nodded, not really sure why Alaric was asking all those questions… He was there for most of the things she was talking about but… Who was she to complain? The young vampire wasn't used to people taking her seriously. They usually wrote her off as being dramatic or a bitch… Even her mother didn't care as much as Caroline would have liked. That was one of the reason s she loved having Luna around. The four-year-old was always happy to see her and they talked about a lot of stuff, even if the child didn't understand everything that Caroline was telling her "Remember the first time Elena grabbed Luna was so she wouldn't get caught… The two of them ended up getting kidnapped and brought to Elijah. The second time Elena and John daggered Elijah and locked Luna into a room by herself." When the man still looked confused and slightly surprised at what he was hearing, the blonde leaned forward "Are you alright, Ric? You're acting a bit weird… Weirder than normal and that's saying something."

"Er… I –"

"Miss Forbes," Elijah greeted, stepping up to the table the three were sitting at.

Caroline glanced up at Elijah, a question in his eyes "Elijah. You can call me Caroline, you know?"

"I apologize, Caroline," the man nodded, ruffling Luna's hair when the girl looked up at him with her tongue stuck between her teeth in concentration "What are you drawing there, sweetheart?"

"Doggy," Luna exclaimed with a bright smile.

Klaus glanced down at the paper and blinked in surprise when he could actually recognize the dog… Was it normal for children to be able to make legit drawings? He thought it was mostly scribbling at that age. Caroline smoothed a hand over Luna's hair "What can we do for you, Elijah?"

"I need a word with Alaric," the Original pointed out.

The older blonde looked from one man to the other and down to the four-year-old "Luna? How about the two of us go to the park to play?"

"Okay," Luna shrugged, abandoning her drawing. She didn't quite know what was going on but she was smart enough to know that something was wrong with Ric. He didn't talk to her like he normally did… It scared her a bit but when she saw Caroline she knew that everything would be alright. The little blonde shimmied out of the booth, getting caught by Elijah when she was about to fall flat onto her face.

The Original swung her into his arms "Careful, little one. Don't want to damage that cute little face you have." He tapped her nose with a smile, setting her down again. Caroline took Luna's hand and was about to pay for her food when Elijah waved her off "It's alright. You go ahead."

Klaus watched the whole interaction with a hint of intrigue "What can I do for you?"

"Come with me," the older Original demanded curtly, walking out of the door behind the two girls. Once they were outside, Elijah started in the direction of the park "Hello, Niklaus."

"You know," Klaus sighed.

Elijah turned to look at his younger brother with a frown "I admit it took me a while to put the pieces together. I don't know Alaric well enough but Damon noticed something was wrong."

"I'm impressed," Klaus mocked "I'm surprised that you actually called for me. What made you change your mind, brother?"

"Her," the older Mikaelson said, nodding his head towards the blonde child who was running around with Caroline chasing after her. Both girls were laughing and generally acting silly "Doesn't she remind you of someone?"

Klaus raised an eyebrow at his brother and looked to the girl "What are you talking about?"

"Luna is your daughter, Niklaus."

"What?" the Hybrid snorted "That's impossible. Vampires can't have children." He shook his head, dismissing the idea immediately. Sure, the girl looked a little like him now that Elijah mentioned it but she wasn't his daughter "Why did you really call me here? Is this another misguided attempt to get me to undagger our siblings?"

Elijah exhaled, sitting down on one of the park's benches "I am not lying to you, Niklaus. Luna Salvatore really is your daughter." He ran a hand through his hair "But this isn't the only reason I told you about the Doppelgänger. Damon and Stefan have agreed that it was the best course of action after what Elena did to Luna."

"So you're going to do what? Just hand her over?" Klaus raised an eyebrow "You have been against me using the Doppelgängers since you fell in love with Katerina."

"Take her for all I care," the older Mikaelson waved "You have waited for a thousand years to break your curse… I should not have helped our parents and for that, I have to apologize."

The Hybrid scoffed "What changed your mind?"

"I read some of the journals that were left by Luna's mother," Elijah admitted "She wrote about some curious things that we will have to discuss soon."

Klaus relaxed back against the back of the bench "So to get this straight. You're not going to stand in my way?"

"No. I am not," Elijah said "There's one thing I ask of you though."

"Alright," the younger of the two waved his hand dismissively. He was pretty sure he knew what Elijah was going to ask. The same thing that his older brother had wanted since the beginning.

"I want you to use Isobel Fleming as the vampire sacrifice," Elijah spoke up after a moment of silence.

Klaus blinked in surprise "I'm sorry?"

"Elena's mother. I want her to be the vampire sacrifice," he repeated, turning his head to look at Luna again. Caroline was dangling her upside down in her grip, tickling her madly. The Original smiled at the picture. The older girl was good with Luna and she really seemed to open up whenever his niece was around.

"Done… I need a werewolf though," the younger Original mumbled "They are annoying to procure."

Elijah smiled thinly "I have kept an eye on one of the werewolves who was here in town. The Martins will collect her if you want."

"You really are trying to help me, aren't you?"

"I really am," Elijah murmured, placing one of his hands on his brother's shoulder "And I know that you don't want to believe it… But Luna really is your daughter."

* * *

 

Elijah, Damon and Stefan were walking towards the place where the ritual was already in full swing. They left Luna at the Boarding House by herself for a little while since she was already sleeping. The girl had exhausted herself with worrying over Damon who had been bitten by Tyler a few hours ago. While he has completely healed thanks to Luna's blood, he still had an act to do. Stefan had agreed with his older brother… The younger of the two would go to Klaus after the ritual was done with and beg him for the cure. Neither Damon nor Stefan were on board with the whole 'Klaus is the father of their niece' thing and since the Hybrid had denied the little girl, they would do anything in their power to protect her. Even if it meant going to Klaus.

The three vampires arrived closer to the end of the actual ritual part. Isobel and the werewolf were already dead on the ground, while Elena was staring at her mother, tears in her eyes. Klaus was slowly approaching the Doppelgänger, a grin on his lips "It's time." The circle of fire disappeared from around Elena and he extended a hand towards her. The girl got up from the ground after slapping the offered hand away. The soon-to-be Hybrid followed the Doppelgänger to the altar, grabbing Elena's face harshly "I would say thank you but from what I heard about you…" The words were said with a small smirk "Ridding the world of you would be a blessing."

"Go to hell," she spat angrily.

The Hybrid snorted at the threat and sank his teeth into the girl's neck, draining her. After every drop was drained, Klaus dropped the Doppelgänger unceremoniously. His head snapped up to the full moon at the same time as the flame in the ritual bowl extinguished "I can feel it," he breathed in awe, his bones beginning to crack "It's happening."

From their place at the edge of the Quarry, the three spectators could see Klaus' eyes. They were a golden yellow like a werewolf's eyes while the veins stayed put. Suddenly, Klaus was thrown through the air. Stefan's head snapped to where a new voice was starting up a chant. Bonnie came down the hillside with John Gilbert at her heels. She was chanting a long and complicated spell. While everyone was distracted, John quickly picked up his daughter's body and vanished back into the forest.

"No," Klaus shouted, pain filling his voice "You were dead." The witch continued to chant her spell while Klaus' body contorted into painful shapes.

Within a second, Stefan was behind Bonnie, cutting off her air supply "Damon, go back to Luna. You should be with her." The witch fell limp in his arms and he nodded at the older Original who walked to stand beside his slowly changing brother. The two vampires watched how every bone in Klaus' body seemed to break, one after the other. The transformation seemed to drag on and on…

Stefan startled when he felt his phone vibrating "Damon?" he answered in confusion "Is everything alright?" He listened to what his brother said with a frown and cursed when Damon just hung up before Stefan could ask anything else "Dammit." What kind of message was that supposed to be? 'Bring Elijah if you can'?

The Original had turned away from the wolf "Is everything alright?"

"I have no idea," Stefan shook his head "Damon told me to bring you back to the Boarding House. Something happened but he wouldn't tell me…"

Elijah hesitated and looked from the younger vampire to his brother and back "I –"

Stefan shook his head "No, I understand. Go… Damon and I should be able to deal with whatever it is that happened."

"Will you call me if anything happened to Luna?" Elijah questioned.

"Sure. I'm sure Damon's just overreacting though…"  _Hopefully._  The last part was added silently. Neither man would be able to forgive themselves if anything happened to Luna. What if someone broke in while the girl was alone? There was only one way to find out.


	21. Aftermath

Once Stefan told him to leave, Damon ran home at full speed. He wasn't sure whether it had been a good idea to leave Luna on her own but since Rose was with some friends out of state for the week and he stupidly forgot about Caroline it was their only choice.

Not ten minutes later, he arrived at the Boarding House, calling out Luna's name. Once she didn't answer, he immediately barged into her room. Maybe she was just asleep and didn't hear him… There was no one in the room, not a single trace of the four-year-old anywhere. He was about to call Stefan when he heard the smallest of whimpers coming from beneath the bed.

"Luna?" Damon frowned, kneeling down to look under the piece of furniture "What the...?" The vampire blinked, rubbed his eyes and stared at the tiny grey-white wolf in his niece's room "Luna?" he called softly, hoping that she would recognize him enough not to take a bit out of him.

The wolf cub whined, sniffing at the hand he was holding out carefully. Once it was done, the wolf shimmied towards him, jumping into his lap, licking him happily.

"Okay, okay," the older Salvatore laughed "I get it, you're happy to see me." Once he was sitting on his niece's bed comfortably, he pulled out his phone, dialing Stefan's number "I think you should come home. There's a bit of a problem... Bring Elijah if you can." Damon didn't give his brother a chance to reply and turned his attention back to the tiny white wolf. So she really was Klaus' daughter. He really hoped that Elijah was wrong when he told them about it but a part of him already knew that she really was the Hybrid's daughter. Whether they liked it or not "No, Luna… Wait," Damon called out when the wolf wriggled out of his arms, running out of the room at full speed.

"Damon?" Stefan questioned, seeing his brother looking around outside the front door "What's going on?"

The older of the two groaned "You're not going to believe this but Luna transformed into a wolf and I lost her. She ran out and I don't know where she is."

"What?" the younger brother laughed but when Damon didn't even smile, he froze "I'm calling Elijah." Stefan quickly pulled out his phone, informing the older Original of their problem.

Elijah looked at the phone he was holding with a puzzled frown. This shouldn't have been possible, at all. Why would Niklaus curse also cause his daughter to transform? He was keeping an eye on his younger brother, keeping his distance after he had gotten growled at several times.

Luna had no idea what happened. She had gone to sleep and woke up to find herself in unimaginable pain. Once it stopped, she was smaller… and it was weird in general. She had fallen down several times, trying to walk on four legs. She stumbled through the forest, trying to follow the scent that had reached her earlier. After several more minutes, she found a bigger wolf.

Klaus had been about to go and find something to hunt when he noticed a scent that drew him in. It was quickly coming closer and he readied himself when a tiny wolf – reaching only the middle of his own leg – tumbled out of the bushes. He growled at the small pup and tilted his head when she started wagging her tail. It took him a minute before he felt another tug somewhere inside of him. Something familiar… like family.

The smaller wolf nipped at Klaus' legs, jumping on her back legs to reach his face. He didn't quite know what to do, so he just watched as the little pup ran around him, occasionally jumping forward and back once he lowered his head. After a little while, he laid down on the forest floor, causing Luna to let out an excited bark. Klaus carefully started batting his paw at the jumping puppy and held her down whenever he managed to knock her off balance. While that was going on, he was careful not to hurt her or anything.

Luna for her part was having the time of her life. She had no idea why she was so drawn to the other wolf but she enjoyed playing with him. She whirled around when she heard a twig snap behind her. Before the pup could blink, Klaus was on his feet, growling in the direction the noise came from.

Elijah held up his hands at the action and stepped further back… He had seen the little puppy approach his brother and was ready to step in at the first sign of danger but to his surprise, Niklaus merely watched the small wolf jump around before he actually started participating. It was as if his inner wolf recognized Luna as his daughter. That would also mean that Luna did indeed change into a wolf. Just when he was sure that Niklaus was about to rip him apart, the small wolf started chewing on the bigger wolf's tail, causing him to whirl around. He quickly pulled out his phone and dialed Stefan's number. He told them not to worry and that the Original would try and bring Luna back to the Boarding House as soon as he could.

The whole playing started again with Luna continuing to run around, jumping at Klaus until he laid back down, keeping an ear turned in the direction where the Original was standing. After several more leaps and excited barks, Luna scampered onto Niklaus' back, striking a victory pose. Elijah couldn't help but grin. He thought about snapping a picture but the flash would most likely startle the animals and that was the last thing he needed right now.

Over the course of the night, he tried to get closer to Luna a few more times to take her home but every time he got closer, Klaus growled at him. In the end, he waited until the two wolves curled around each other. The sun came up and the two started changing back. Since they were still out, Elijah shrugged out of his jacket, wrapping it around Luna's small body. He lifted her up and ran in the direction of the Boarding House.

* * *

Damon and Stefan were out of their minds with worry for Luna. Anything could have happened to her and she was tiny… Even a rabbit could have probably hurt her. The only thing that stopped them from searching through the forest was the short text from Elijah.

"Hey, guys," Caroline greeted cheerily, walking into the Boarding House around eleven at night. She froze when she saw the two brothers pacing around the living room "What in the world are you doing?"

"Worrying," Stefan told her with a grim look.

The baby vampire blinked "I got that… But why are you worrying."

Before they could answer, Stefan's phone started ringing "It's Elijah. Hello?"

" _Listen, I can't talk for long,_ " Elijah whispered " _If I do, my brother might attack me and I don't fancy a werewolf bite at the moment. Luna is fine… They are playing right now… It is surprisingly cute, actually. I'll bring her home as soon as I can._ "

"Alright… Make sure she's safe, alright?" Stefan pleaded.

Elijah hummed " _I will._ "

"What is going on? Where is Luna and why is she playing?" Caroline questioned, jumping forward as soon as Stefan hung up.

Stefan rubbed a hand over his hair "Ah, this is a bit complicated. You know that Elijah is close to Luna, right?" Once Caroline nodded the younger Salvatore continued "That's cause he's her uncle," he rushed out.

The blonde's eyes widened "Wait, wait, wait… Elijah is Luna's uncle… So that means her father is…"

"Klaus," Damon finished with a nod "Luna transformed at the same time as Klaus did."

Caroline squealed "Oh, I bet that she's just the cutest puppy."

Stefan gaped lightly "Wow… You're taking that a lot better than I expected."

"Eh, I always knew that Luna was special," the blonde smiled "That just proves it. It's not like I'm going to start hating her all of a sudden."

"Does that mean you're staying until Elijah comes back?" Damon asked, grabbing two empty classes.

Caroline nodded "You're not going to get rid of me tonight…"

She glanced at the glasses and blinked in surprise when Damon handed her one and the other to Stefan "I thought you might need one," Damon told his brother with a shrug.

"Thanks, Damon."

The three vampires waited until the early hours of the morning for Elijah to come back. Caroline had fallen asleep around three, while Damon and Stefan stayed awake, talking about everything and nothing. At seven in the morning, the front door opened. Both brothers were on their feet immediately, startling Caroline who blinked the sleep out of her eyes "What's going on?" she murmured.

Elijah walked into the room, a small bundle clutched in his arms "She's sleeping. Here."

Damon took the little one from the Original's arms and brushed aside the jacket "Wow… Has she been rolling around in the mud?"

"Pretty much," the Original nodded "You should have seen it though. I would have never thought that Niklaus would allow her this close…"

"What happened?" Caroline asked curiously, looking at Luna's muddy face.

Elijah's lips twitched "He let her 'conquer' him. She climbed onto his head and struck the smuggest pose a wolf cub could ever pull off."

"Huh," the brothers blinked "Well, thanks for bringing her back." Damon turned in the direction of the stairs "I'm going to get her to a bed…"

Stefan, on the other hand, looked at the Original "What's your plan now?"

"I'm going to talk to Niklaus, see if I can maybe get him to believe that Luna is his daughter…" he explained "Caroline, Stefan… I'll see you soon."

* * *

Klaus woke up in the forest, feeling free for the first time since he was human. Several pieces of clothing hit the ground around him. He turned his head to see Elijah leaning against a tree "That was amazing…" Klaus frowned "I can't really recall what happened though."

"You were the perfect cuddly wolf," the older of the two said, lips twitching.

"What?"

Elijah shook his head "Nothing, nothing. You've had your fun now. Let's talk, brother."

"Ah, that's right," Klaus smirked "What was it again? You want to convince me that Luna Salvatore is my daughter." He shrugged on his jacket with Elijah's assistance and turned to walk back to Alaric's apartment which he was still using as a residence. As soon as they were in the flat, Klaus raised his eyebrow at the vampire Doppelgänger who was pressed against the wall across from them "Well, hello there, Katerina."

"Elijah?" she breathed, seeing the older Original behind the Hybrid "Please…"

Klaus looked from his brother to the Doppelgänger and snorted "Oh, how truly touching."

"Niklaus, we need to talk. In private."

Within the blink of an eye, Klaus stabbed a dagger through Elijah's heart, killing him "You didn't honestly think that I believed you, did you, brother?"


	22. 2x05 The Reckoning

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well... That took me two months. I'm sorry, I guess. The wait is over now though. Hope it's worth the wait though. Let's see if you're going to have to wait another two months for the next chapter (I don't think so but we'll never know).
> 
> Enjoy,
> 
> Nick

Luna was curled up on the couch in the Boarding House, staring at the doorway longingly. It had been three months since she'd seen her Uncle Stefan and almost as long since Damon had enough time to spend with her. The older Salvatore was always trying to help his brother, trying to get him back home while also trying to get rid of Klaus. At first, Damon hadn't been too worried about Stefan but after he hadn't heard anything from his younger brother, he had started to worry. That's why the four-year-old mostly stayed with Ric and Jenna "When's Uncle Steffi coming back, Ric?"

"I don't know, little one" Alaric sighed, pulling the girl into his arms. Luna hadn't been the same since the night of the ritual. The happy child was still in there somewhere but she was unusually solemn and didn't play as often as she used to. Whenever she was at the Boarding House, they mostly found her watching the front door or even in Stefan's room "But I'll tell you what. Let's call your Uncle Damon, what do you say?"

Luna shook her head "I don't want to talk to him." With that she slid from the couch, walking up the stairs to Stefan's room. The History teacher looked after her and sighed. He had no idea what to do… It made him hope that Stefan would find a way to get back. Either him or Damon. His friend had been trying to find a way to get rid of Klaus but it had proven difficult. When Katherine came, the oldest Salvatore took the chance, leaving with the vampire Doppelgänger.

* * *

That night in a truck that was parked close to Mystic Falls High School, Stefan woke up with a groan "Oh, he lives," Rebekah remarked, looking at her nails.

"What happened?"

The blonde Original looked down at her former friend "You took a beating. My brother has been breaking your neck all afternoon." She snorted, shaking her head "Quite the temper."

Stefan got up, rubbing the back of his neck "Why did he bring us back to Mystic Falls?" A part of him was relieved. Maybe he would finally be able to see Luna again. He had missed his little niece while he was gone and from what Damon told him, his older brother hadn't really been there much either.

_Flashback_

" _Do you think he knows?" Damon questioned "That I was bitten by a wolf that is."_

_Stefan shrugged "It's a possibility… What do you think we should do?"_

" _I want Luna protected," the older of the two shook his head "I don't care what happens. Elijah might have told Klaus that Luna is his daughter but still."_

_Stefan exhaled and closed his eyes for a moment "I'll go to him… Ask him for the cure."_

" _What? No," Damon argued._

" _Shut up," Stefan sighed "It's the only way… And I can try to keep him away from Luna… Maybe even get some more information. Damon…"_

_The older Salvatore groaned "Alright… But under one condition. You're going to keep in contact. I don't care what happens. You call me."_

" _I promise," Stefan nodded, running his hand through Luna's hair one last time before he left the Boarding House. He would do anything to protect his family. Now that Elena was gone, they only had to deal with Klaus and then maybe they could have some well-deserved peace._

_End Flashback_

"You can stop playing dumb now," Rebekah rolled her eyes. She really thought that maybe Stefan would still like to be her friend but after the way he acted, she wasn't sure whether she could trust him. Klaus certainly didn't anymore "It didn't take him long to figure out what you've been doing."

"I'm not hiding anything," the younger Salvatore blinked in confusion. He had no idea what the blonde was on about "I've done everything Klaus has asked me to."

The Original scoffed "No, you just failed to mention that the Doppelgänger is still alive."

"Wait, what?" Stefan gaped "No, she died in the ritual, right?"

His response stopped Rebekah short. Like she told him before, she could tell when he was lying and right now he was telling the truth "You really didn't know about her?"

"No," he shook his head "To be honest, I had really hoped that she would be dead. After what Elena did…"

"What did she do?"

Stefan shrugged "It doesn't matter right now. Where is Klaus now?"

"With any luck? Killing that bloody cow," Rebekah muttered.

The younger of the two vampires held out his arm "Well, would you care to join me, milady? There seems to be a show that I do not want to miss."

The blonde studied the vampire in front of her for a moment before she slipped her hand into the crook of his elbow "I'm not about to defend a Doppelgänger but I'm curious. What did she do? From the sound of it, you cared about her."

"Cared," Stefan murmured "Past tense. Look, I'll explain it to you later but it's a rather long story and I want to get this over with and go home…"

"I'll hold you to that." They walked into the school together, trying to find out where Klaus could be.

In the hallway across from them, Caroline was currently spreading honey on the lockers with Tyler standing behind her "Do you think Matt's going to be okay?"

Tyler sighed "I think that he probably doesn't have a lot of people to talk to anymore. He's struggling more than he lets on."

"I just want this school year to be happier, you know?" Caroline murmured "I just want my friends and family to be happy… Even in the midst of all the crazy unhappy bits."

"You're thinking about Luna, aren't you?" the werewolf questioned "How is she doing?"

Caroline closed her eyes, her heart aching for the four-year-old "I don't think she's doing too well. Since Stefan left and Damon followed, she's been… different. More quiet, withdrawn."

Rebekah raised her eyebrow at Stefan when his name was mentioned. Who was Luna? A girlfriend perhaps? That would explain why he had been longing to go home "Who's Luna?"

"Stefan?" Caroline gasped, seeing the younger Salvatore brother. She immediately threw her arms around him "How are you? What are you doing here? Are you back for good? Did you already go and see Luna?"

"Woah, Care," Stefan grinned "Slow down… I'm fine. Hey, quick question. Did Elena really survive the ritual?"

Tyler frowned "What ritual? What do you mean 'survive'?"

"Ah," the Forbes grimaced "I forgot to tell you about that. Elena was sacrificed and would have been dead if not for John."

"What happened exactly? Do you know where she is?" Stefan questioned urgently. If Klaus was really going to kill Elena – again then he wanted to be there. In the last three months, he had done a lot of thinking. The way Elena acted towards Luna and how he handled it. He should have taken the whole matter more seriously. Not just because it was the right thing to do but Luna was only four years old and since she came to live with them, she had stumbled from one bad situation into the other.

Caroline tilted her head "I assume she's in the gym. Her and Bonnie wanted in on the Senior Prank Night thing that the rest of us planned. Hey, wait," she called when Stefan immediately started walking towards the gym "I thought you wanted to know what happened after the ritual?"

"Then talk and walk," the Salvatore sighed, running a hand through his hair.

"Right, so apparently John Gilbert snatched Elena's body as soon as the rest of you were busy with… other things." Namely Luna "And while I'm not sure what exactly happened, I know that he sacrificed his life for Elena's. He died so she could live."

Stefan sighed "Well, at least it's not a complete loss. That man was as bad as she is."

As soon as they reached the gym, Rebekah stopped them "Let me do the talking, for now, Stefan. I don't think Nik is going to believe anything you say for the moment."

"Yeah, I can see that," Stefan snorted, pushing the doors open.

Elena gasped "Stefan."

The Salvatore narrowed his eyes at her but stayed quiet. Klaus turned around to them and raised his eyebrow when he saw Rebekah with the group "I'd like you all to meet my sister Rebekah. Word of warning… She can be quite mean."

"Don't be an ass," the female Original grumbled "You got it wrong, by the way."

"What?" Klaus blinked in confusion.

Rebekah gestured to Stefan and then to the Doppelgänger "He had no idea that she was alive. You know that he's a bad liar."

The Hybrid scoffed "Why should I believe you?"

"It's the truth," Stefan told him earnestly "I had no idea what happened after the ritual. Damon called me and told me to come home… We had a bit of a problem to deal with."

Klaus studied him for a moment before he shook his head, his eyes drifting to Tyler and then to Bonnie "I'm going to make this very simple… Every time I attempt to turn a werewolf into a vampire hybrid, they die during the transition. It's quite horrible, actually." He sped to the werewolf, quickly biting into his wrist "I need you to find a way to save my Hybrids, Bonnie. And for Tyler's sake… You better hurry."

"No," Stefan called, running at them. He might not care about what happened to Elena but Tyler and Caroline were his friends.

Klaus caught him with one hand, holding onto Tyler with the other "Well, well, well," he murmured, smirking at Stefan "Stop fighting me. This will happen whether you want it or not." When the Salvatore stopped struggling, Klaus released him "Now be a good little Ripper and do as I tell you."

Stefan looked from the werewolf in Klaus' grip to Caroline and back "Leave him alone. He never did anything to you."

"Hm," Klaus hummed "I don't think I will."

Just as he was about to twist Tyler's neck, Stefan slipped out of his grip, freeing Tyler in the same motion. He had no idea how he managed it but now Stefan was standing between the Hybrid and Tyler, crouched in a defensive position "I said, leave him."

"Isn't this fascinating," the Hybrid tilted his head "Your loyalty to these… people is stronger than the compulsion. Who would have thought that?" Klaus looked around the room before his eyes landed back on Stefan "Why don't you turn it off?"

"No," Stefan shook his head, stumbling a step back. His mind flashed to Luna. He couldn't leave her… Now that he was so close to coming home to his little niece, he couldn't just turn it off.

Elena took a step forward, her eyes fixed on Stefan "Leave him alone."

"How interesting," the Hybrid muttered "If you don't care about her then why does she care about you, hm?"

"I don't know," Stefan bit out "And I don't care either. You can go ahead and kill her."

"I take it this is about that little niece of yours?" Klaus leaned against a wall close to the younger vampire "Come on. Your humanity is killing you. All the guilt and misguided loyalty must be exhausting. Turn it off."

Again, Stefan shook his head "No."

Rebekah took a step forward, looking at Stefan worriedly "Nik, maybe you should –"

"Stay out of this, Bekah," Klaus hissed, glaring at Stefan "You're strong… But you're not that strong. Turn. It. Off."

"No," the younger Salvatore brother gasped, about to run for Tyler.

Klaus grabbed him quickly, slamming him against the wall he had been leaning against "Turn it off," he yelled, compelling Stefan again. This time the other vampire's face changed. The emotions drained out of his eyes and he became emotionless.

* * *

Later that night, after Klaus had successfully turned Tyler into a Hybrid, Stefan decided to go back home. He wanted to see Luna again and while he couldn't feel the emotions behind the memories, he saw how much that little girl meant to him.

"Where are you going?" Rebekah questioned, leaning against the wall close to him. As soon as her brother had the Doppelgänger's blood, he left… Left her in this stupid town. She might as well try and get the story out of Stefan now "I thought you promised me a story?"

The Ripper sighed and ran a hand through his hair "There's something I need to do first. Someone I have to see first," he told the Original.

"Is it this Luna? Who is she?"

"You'll see," Stefan murmured, walking out of the school without a backwards glance. He knew that Rebekah would follow him. She was way too curious not to but he didn't care. As long as she didn't harm Luna, he was fine with her tagging along. After all, they had been friends once upon a time.

It didn't take them long to reach the Boarding House. He glanced back at a quite Rebekah and opened the door. Stefan looked around the familiar hallway before checking the living room "Ric."

The Hunter's head snapped up and he sagged in relief "Stefan. You're back."

"Where's Damon?"

"Are you alright?" Ric questioned, seeing the lack of emotion in Stefan's voice. When he didn't get an answer, he shook his head "I don't know. He went off with Katherine, trying to find a way to get rid of Klaus."

Stefan tilted his head "He went with Katherine?"

"Everything to protect Luna, I assume." It was then that Alaric noticed the blonde behind Stefan "Who is that?"

"I'm Rebekah," the Original nodded "Stefan is an old friend of mine."

Alaric frowned for a moment before he shrugged. Stefan probably knew what he was doing. If not and any harm came to Luna, Damon would kill his younger brother "She's upstairs, I think. Check your room… She barely left it these past three months."

"Is she alright?"

Before Alaric could answer, a blonde blur slammed into the younger vampire's legs, almost taking him down "Uncle Steffi," Luna sniffed. The four-year-old had woken up from a nightmare and heard her uncle's voice. At first, she thought that she was still dreaming but when she had seen him…

"Hello, little one," Stefan murmured, picking the small child up.

"Missed you," Luna informed him with a stuffy voice.

The younger Salvatore took a deep breath and buried his face in Luna's hair "I missed you too, little moon."

"That… wasn't exactly who I was expecting," Rebekah blinked, seeing the Ripper with a child attached to him "Who is she?"

Ric looked from Stefan to Rebekah and then to Luna "I trust you'll take it from here?"

"Go," Stefan nodded, sitting down on the couch. He was going off the memories he had from the past several months. While he didn't feel much anymore, he still knew how to act. It was muscle memory by now "Thank you for looking after her."

"No problem," the History teacher shook his head "Goodnight."

"Luna is my niece," Stefan told the blonde Original as soon as Ric was gone "She came to live with my brother and me a few months ago after her mother died." He carefully coaxed the girl away from his neck, not reacting to the small whine she gave "Luna, I'd like you to meet Rebekah. She is an old friend of mine."

Rebekah gasped, catching sight of the child's face "How…?"

"You see it then?" Stefan questioned, raising his eyebrow with a smirk.

"This isn't possible. She looks like Nik," Rebekah breathed, kneeling down in front of Stefan "Hello, Luna. I'm Rebekah."

Luna looked up at the other blonde and sniffed "'lo."

"Luna is your brother's child," the Salvatore explained "We had Elijah confirm it… Not that it was needed after she turned into a puppy after Klaus broke the ritual."

"Elijah was here?" Rebekah asked "Where is he?"

The four-year-old perked up "Elijah?"

"Klaus daggered him," Stefan pointed out "Elijah was trying to convince him that Luna is his daughter… I'm not exactly sure why Klaus daggered him, to begin with, but… He did."

Rebekah flopped down on the couch "He probably thought that it was some kind of plot to get our siblings back, that paranoid ass."

"You're taking this well."

"I'm still processing," the blonde hummed "After all, vampires can't have children. I can't deny how much they look alike though and Nik is an idiot if he didn't see it."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, so I have something to say that I want your opinion on…
> 
> I was thinking about making this a series. Like after the first part there could be sequels with different pairings, different Crossovers. For example, a CatCF Crossover with Wonka as a vampire, an HP Crossover with Luna/Draco pairing and so on.
> 
> At the moment it's just an idea but… I'm seriously thinking about it, so… Tell me what you think about that.
> 
> Nick


	23. Bonding Time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here you go, people. A new chapter. Celebrate me...
> 
> Sorry. I should probably go to bed xD
> 
> Enjoy,
> 
> Nick

The morning after Stefan got back home was a slow one for the vampires inhabiting the Boarding House. Luna hadn't let go of the older vampire at all and refused to leave his side even after they both woke up. The girl was a lot quieter now than she had been but that was to be expected. After all, it wasn't only Stefan who left but Damon and Rose as well. The younger Salvatore brother could guess what his brother was doing but he had no idea where Rose had gone. She didn't seem the type to just leave when things were going on. That's why Stefan picked Luna up, sitting her down on the kitchen counter "Do you know where Rose is, little Moon?" he questioned, ignoring Rebekah for the moment.

Luna shook her head "Said she had to take care of things," the four-year-old murmured, eying her uncle as if he would disappear at any moment "I'm hungry."

"Food hungry?" Stefan questioned. The four-year-old shook her head and the other Salvatore nodded, getting a blood bag from the fridge.

Rebekah tilted her head "She drinks blood?"

"Yup," Stefan nodded.

"Is there anything else that's different about her?" the Original question curiously. She was wondering whether she got anything else from his brother.

The Salvatore grinned "She is part vampire and part werewolf. Luna changed into a wolf at the same time as Klaus broke the curse. I think she's also part witch but her mother had it locked away until Luna is older." It was then that Stefan remembered something "Luna? Did you turn these last few months?"

"No," the girl shook her head "Hurts. Didn't wanna."

Rebekah hid a smile from where she was leaning against the doorframe "I can understand that, little one. I wouldn't want to go through that either."

Stefan rolled his eyes at her "Really, Bekah?" He ruffled Luna's hair "I'm glad that you don't have to go through turning every month."

"Who is Rose?" the blonde Original questioned, stepping forward. Rebekah felt like she was asking more questions than she ever had. The situation she found herself in was a strange one but it helped that Stefan was there, even if he was different from what she remembered.

Stefan turned to look at her after handing the little vampire a glass of blood "Rose is my brother's girlfriend. She… I believe you might actually know her since Rose helped your brother a few centuries back. Her friend and she have been on the run from both Klaus and Elijah for five hundred years. Ever since Katherine decided to turn herself with Rose's blood."

"Rose is Rosemarie?" Rebekah blinked "Well, I'm impressed. I wouldn't have thought that she would last this long."

"Uncle Steffi?" Luna spoke up hesitatingly "Can we go to the park?"

The Salvatore ran his hand over the girl's hair and smiled "Of course, we can." He then turned to look at Rebekah "Wanna come?"

Rebekah shrugged "Sure, why not. It's not every day I get the chance to get to know my adorable niece." When Stefan shook his head with a grin, the Original tilted her head "What?"

"Nothing, nothing," Stefan muttered "It's just surprising how you and Elijah accepted that she's your brother's child while he did not."

"Nik is stubborn that way," the blonde Original sighed "Do you even want him to believe you though?"

The younger of the Salvatore brothers bit his lip, carrying Luna to the car "I don't know. On one hand, I want him to stay as far away from Luna as possible but the again… He is her father and I don't think it's fair to keep him away from her. Not after she lost her mother not too long ago."

"I can tell you that no matter what you think Nik is… He would never hurt a child," Rebekah said "He is an asshole but once he accepts that Luna is who she is… I'm sure he'll come to love her. If you give him a chance."

"My brother is looking for a way to kill yours," Stefan pointed out "I don't think that it's going to turn out alright. Either for him or for us."

Rebekah glanced out of the passenger side window "I… I guess we'll just have to wait and see what's going to happen. I just hope that your brother doesn't do anything stupid."

Stefan snorted "Then you obviously haven't met Damon yet. It got better since Luna arrived." He glanced at the four-year-old who was happily playing with her fingers, somewhat oblivious to their conversation.

"That sounds like one of my other brothers," the Original snorted "His name is Kol."

"Elijah mentioned him before," Stefan mused his expressionless eyes on the road. It was so much harder to imitate emotions when it came to anyone but Luna but it worked. Somewhat at least "He said that Kol could help with the fact that Luna's witch side is locked away."

Rebekah nodded thoughtfully "Elijah's right. If anyone can help it's Kol. Much as I hate to admit it…"

"We're here," Stefan said after another moment, parking the car.

Twenty minutes later, Luna was playing tag with Rebekah, the older girl letting her win every time. From his place at the edge of the park, Stefan could see Luna pouting, demanding that Rebekah try.

"Stefan," a voice startled him from his observation.

He turned his head, staring at Elena with a raised eyebrow "What do you want?"

"I wanted to talk to you," the Doppelgänger murmured "About us."

The Salvatore scoffed "There is no 'us'. There hasn't been for a long time. I don't feel anything for you Elena."

The brown-haired girl crossed her arms "That's only because Klaus forced you to turn your emotions off. I know you still love me."

"Uncle Steffi," Luna called, running at him.

The older vampire crouched down, catching the girl in his arms, swinging her around with a small grin "Getting bored of playing with Rebekah already?"

"What's that supposed to mean?" the blonde Original demanded, her eyes glinting with laughter.

"Bekah," the four-year-old cheered, back to her happy self. Her smile faded when she turned in Stefan's arms to see Elena glaring at her.

The Doppelgänger sniffed "How can you act affectionate with that brat and tell me that you don't love me? How did you even fight Klaus' compulsion."

"I didn't," Stefan shot back, baring his teeth at the girl across from him. He pushed her away from him, making her stumble to the ground "Now, I suggest you leave now before I decide to turn you into my own personal chew toy. I don't care about you. I haven't for months…"

"Fine," Elena huffed, storming off but not without throwing one last glare at the little blonde in Stefan's arms. She would have glared at Rebekah too but she wasn't sure whether that was the best idea. For once, she decided to go with self-preservation and leave before one of the vampires decided to kill her regardless.

A few days later, Luna was playing on the floor of the parlour when the front door opened. The blonde child looked up when the footsteps stopped a few feet away from her "Rose," she gasped, throwing herself into the other vampire's arms.

"I missed you, little one," Rose whispered, pressing a kiss to Luna's hair. She didn't want to be gone for as long as she was but there had been some problems with a group of her friends and it took them ages to sort it out "I'm sorry that I left… I have something for you."

Luna looked up at the older woman with wide eyes "Me?"

Rose smiled down at the adorable four-year-old and nodded. She pulled out a stuffed bunny. When she had seen it in a shop, she just had to buy it. It was adorable – just like Luna. The bunny was white, the head bigger than the actual body with big eyes "Here you go."

"Thank you," Luna mumbled, hiding her face in the soft material of the stuffed animal.

"For you, always," the vampire gave back, looking around "Is Damon here?"

"Damon has been gone for the past month," Stefan said, walking over to the two girls "At least that's what Ric told me."

Rose startled when she heard the younger Salvatore's voice "Stefan?" she blinked "When did you get back?"

"About a week ago," he shrugged "Where have you been?"

"Some friends had a problem with a coven of witches. They pissed them off and needed all the help they could get. It took me way longer than I thought it would," the older woman admitted "Are you alright? You've been gone for months."

Stefan ran a hand through his hair, sitting down on the sofa "Fine. It could have been way worse, so I'm really quite lucky."

"Rosie?" Luna murmured, rubbing at her eyes "I'm tired… Can I sleep with you?"

Rose and Stefan exchanged a look. The younger vampire eventually nodded. While he wasn't too happy about Luna not sleeping in her own room anymore, he couldn't really begrudge her. They had been gone for a while and the four-year-old had problems sleeping before everyone left her… If that didn't stop within the next month though, he had to put his foot down.

"Who the hell are you?" Damon frowned, looking at Rebekah in confusion. He had just returned home to find a strange girl sitting with his younger brother. The older Salvatore shook his head "Never mind that. I found a way to get rid of Klaus."

Stefan looked up "How?"

"There's a guy called Mikael. He…"

Rebekah cut him off "Are you really that stupid? If Mikael is coming here then Luna is in danger."

Damon raised his eyebrows "Okay, who are you?"

"That's Rebekah. Klaus' sister," Stefan explained "Damon, it's not worth putting Luna in danger just to get rid of Klaus."

"It's too late now," the older brother murmured "Katherine and I freed him… He's on his way."

It was then that Rose came down, carrying a half-asleep Luna who was clutching the stuffed animal she had gotten earlier "What's going on?"

Stefan looked from Rebekah to Damon and then to his niece "Do you think Mikael would recognize her?"

"I did. Elijah did as well," the Original pointed out "If you don't get her out of here as soon as possible, I can almost guarantee that my father is going to kill her."

"Crap," Damon cursed.

Luna looked up, hearing her uncle's voice "Dami?"

"Hey, baby girl," the older Salvatore smiled, taking her out of Rose's arms. He pressed a short kiss to the older vampire's lips and turned back to Luna "What do you have there?"

"Rosie gave me it," the four-year-old declared proudly, holding up the white bunny.

Damon listened to her talk for a little while longer before he ruffled her hair "I have something for you as well, little Moon. How about you go upstairs with Rose? I need to talk to Stefan and Rebekah for a moment. I'll be up in a little bit." Rose nodded, taking Luna upstairs with her.

"What are we going to do now?" Stefan questioned. Rebekah shrugged. She was still not quite used to this time, so there was no way she would be able to make any suggestions.

Damon ran his hand through his hair "Well, I can't go and Katherine mentioned you," he told his brother "Maybe… Okay, how about I talk to Rose? She could take Luna on a trip to… Wherever?"

"I can do that," Rose called from upstairs. As soon as she heard that, she immediately started plotting. Luna was more than old enough and the vampire had always wanted to go to Disney World… Yes, she was an adult but ever since Disney started, Rose was hooked. Now that she had a daylight ring, she finally could go to the park. It would be a pretty nice trip for Luna since the little girl was as much of a Disney fan as her.


	24. Mikael

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, one thing in advance. I'm not going to write anything much about the actual stay at Disney World (because I've never been there… Plan on maybe going to Disneyland Paris this year but that's still a work in progress).
> 
> Enjoy,
> 
> Nick

As soon as Luna woke up the next morning, Rose immediately packed her up and left for their trip. The four-year-old agreed as soon as the offer was made. No matter whether her uncles had just gotten back. What child didn't love to go to Disney World? Especially a child who was practically in love with everything to do with Disney.

The two girls had been gone for almost a week. A week of sitting on hot coals for Damon, Stefan and the rest of their group. By now, they weren't sure whether this had been a good idea. Rebekah had told the brothers a little bit about her father. Only that Klaus had been his favourite target and them running from him for a long time.

Damon was pacing in the living room, running a hand through his hair "What are we going to do?"

"I have no idea," Stefan shook his head "I really don't… When's Rose getting back with Luna?"

"They should be on their way back… I really don't think…" It was then that the door opened and a man walked in. Stefan frowned in confusion but got up when he saw his older brother stiffen "Mikael, I presume?"

Mikael inclined his head, looking around the house with disdain written over his face "Now, I believe that you said Niklaus would be here?"

"He left," Damon shook his head "I don't know where he went…"

"Then find out," the man hissed, narrowing his eyes on the two young vampires "I will not be wasting my time here."

"Hello, father," Rebekah greeted coldly, walking into the room to stand by Stefan's side.

Mikael's gaze locked onto his daughter "Rebekah…"

She sneered "Whatever fatherly bullshit you're thinking about. Don't even try."

"I didn't know you would be here," he told her.

"I could say the same," the female Original hummed, crossing her arms Whatever you're planning to do with me, you can forget it."

Mikael tilted his head "You were never what I was after," he shook his head.

"Nik is my family," she pointed out "If you're after him, you're after me."

"He blinded you," the Original Hunter hissed, glancing at the two vampires who were watching the interaction in uneasiness "He killed your mother."

Rebekah nodded, tears welling up in her eyes "I know about it, I always have. The thing is… Nik wasn't a born killer – none of us were. You did this to us." She stepped closer to him, glaring up in hatred "When you turned us into vampires. You were the one who destroyed our family. Not him." With that said, she caught Stefan's gaze before storming out of the house.

Outside, she leaned against one of the trees not far from the front door. The Original couldn't believe that she said all of that to her father. Not that it didn't feel good to finally tell him exactly what she thought but she was still terrified of him. Mikael had always been the monster in her life. Not Nik. No matter how often her older brother daggered her or the others… He had never been the person she had nightmares about. She was so lost in thoughts that she didn't hear someone sneak up on her until a twig snapped behind her. Rebekah whirled around, coming face to face with the Doppelgänger.

Before the Original could do anything but sneer, Elena had already thrust the dagger into her heart "Sleep well," the Doppelgänger smirked, watching the girl in front of her grey. When she found out that Rebekah was Klaus' sister and that she had stayed in Mystic Falls with Stefan, she flipped. The dagger had been the one she had daggered Elijah with… It had been left in the Lake House and Elena only remembered it when she thought about what to do with Rebekah. Originally, Elena had wanted to talk to Stefan again but when she saw the blonde bitch leaning against one of the trees, she decided to enact her revenge earlier than planned "Bonnie?" the Doppelgänger asked into her phone, making sure to keep her voice down "I need you to come to the woods by the Boarding House. I have Rebekah."

* * *

Mikael had let his eyes drift across the room after his daughter had stormed out. The Salvatore brothers were watching him warily, trying to figure out how to get Klaus back to Mystic Falls "Well, well, well," the Original Hunter murmured, speeding over to one of the walls to look at a picture "Who is this?" he asked, seeing the photo of a young child with blonde hair.

Damon paled "No one."

"Don't lie to me," Mikael narrowed his eyes on the raven-haired brother "That child looks like Niklaus." Stefan closed his eyes, internally berating himself and Damon for not checking the house for pictures of Luna. If Elijah and Rebekah could recognize who she was at first glance, it was obvious that Mikael would as well. Before he could open his mouth to lie, he was shoved against the wall, a tight hand across his throat "Who is she?" the Original Hunter snarled, compelling the vampire easily.

The younger of the brothers grimaced, fighting against the compulsion. He didn't want to tell this man about Luna. There was no way, he would tell someone who wanted to kill Klaus about the Hybrid's daughter. Stefan gasped in shock when he felt the emotions flowing through his body. In the middle of his internal fight, the switch on his humanity had snapped back on "I –"

"Let go of my brother," Damon demanded lowly. He knew it was a bad idea to go against an Original but no one hurt his brother.

The older Salvatore ran at Mikael and when he got closer, the Original Hunter let go of Stefan, throwing Damon across the room easily. As soon as he had let go of the younger brother, Stefan was up, tackling Mikael to the ground. The dull thump of the White Oak stake falling out of the man's pocket was drowned out by the snap of Stefan's neck. The Original Hunter's attention turned to Damon completely and the oldest Salvatore knew that he was screwed. Mikael advanced on him, yanking a piece of wood out of the wall "You shouldn't have crossed me."

"Yeah?" Damon challenged "I never thought I'd say that but… Rebekah was right. You are an asshole." Mikael growled, his hand shooting out to push the younger vampire against the wall. When he was about to stake him, he felt a hand on his shoulder.

Klaus had been on his way to Mystic Falls to see how Rebekah was doing. He wanted to talk to her about something. When he arrived at the Boarding House, there was the sound of a fight inside. The Hybrid might not like the older of the two brothers but Stefan had been his friend once… That had to count for something. He walked inside quietly, surveying the scene in front of him with wide eyes. Stefan was lying on the floor with his neck snapped, while his father had Damon against the wall by his throat. What caused his to freeze though was the stake that was lying not far from where Stefan had fallen. His father's White Oak stake was lying on the floor waiting to be picked up, so as quickly as he could, Klaus grabbed it and approached his father.

"Niklaus," the man spat, eyeing the man in front of him in disgust.

"Hello, Mikael," Klaus gave back, a smirk curling on his lips "Have you lost something?"

Mikael frowned in confusion before his gaze caught the White Oak stake in the Hybrid's hand "Give that…" Before he could say more, Klaus had glanced to Damon who immediately hit the Original Hunter over the head with the first heavy object he could find. As soon as he was distracted, the Hybrid thrust the stake into his so-called father's heart "No," Mikael gasped, falling to his knees in pain "What have you done?"

As he watched Mikael's burning corpse, Klaus turned to address Damon "Why was he here?"

At that moment, Stefan groaned "What happened?"

"I believe we have some things to discuss," the Hybrid spoke up "But first, where's Rebekah?"

* * *

What the Salvatore brothers didn't know was that there was a man hiding in the shadows. Far enough away so he couldn't be seen but close enough to hear everything that was going on inside. He had heard about the little girl getting to stay with those two… vampires after her mother died but until now, he wasn't sure whether he wanted to go against the two of them. After all, they were vampires and he wasn't.

"Come on," he muttered under his breath, staring at the Boarding House intently. Klaus had just arrived and now the Salvatore brothers were alone with the Hybrid. The man was trying to find out whether the child was there or where they had stashed her.

It seemed to be his lucky day because as soon as that thought crossed his mind, a phone started ringing " _Rose?_ " Damon questioned " _Are you on your way back?_ "

" _Yes,_ " the man heard a very faint female voice on the other end " _We're about half an hour out. Is everything alright?_ "

Damon hummed " _Everything's fine. Mikael is dead and Klaus is back though… How's Luna?_ " That question made the man perk up from his hiding spot, a huge grin on his face. This was what he had been waiting for.

" _She fell asleep about half an hour ago. I think she had a good time,_ " Rose chuckled " _Hasn't stopped talking until she fell asleep._ "

" _That's something I can see,_ " the older Salvatore grinned, shaking his head.

" _I'll see you later, Damon,_ " the older vampire pointed out " _I'm glad that you're alright._ "

Damon couldn't help the smile that stole its way across his face " _So am I. I'll see you, Rose._ "

After he hung up, the man retreated from his position. It was all he needed. The girl wouldn't get away from him again. This time she was his… No mother to protect her and he was sure that he could take her guard vampire if he caught them before they got too close to the Boarding House.

The man took up a position close to where he guessed they would drive by at the beginning of town, shortly behind the 'Welcome to Mystic Falls' sign. Now, the only thing he had to do was wait.

Not even fifteen minutes later, he could see a black SUV coming up the road. He sped along the length of the street, lying down in the middle of the road, pretending to be unconscious. While that might not be the best idea, he really didn't want his girl hurt before he had a chance to have her.

"Hello?" the same voice from the phone called carefully. The man grinned into his arm, waiting until the woman got a little closer "Are you alright? Luna, stay in the car."

As soon as the footsteps stopped behind him, the man shot up, attacking the vampire with all of his strength. He got in a couple of hits and after a little while, he managed to wrap his arm around the woman's throat "Don't move," he hissed into the vampire's ear "Now, what to do with you…?" Rose struggled against his grip, trying to get back to the car, trying to protect Luna but the man held tight. He let out a breath of annoyance and snapped Rose's neck, dropping her to the ground ungracefully "I told you not to move," he tutted. A glance in the direction of the car told him that the little girl was still inside, so he sped over.

Luna gasped when a man appeared at the car, staring at her. It only took her a second to recognize the bad man who had hurt her mommy and her "No," she whimpered, trying to scramble to the other side of the car.

The man smirked at the attempt to get away from him and grabbed a hold of the child's arm "You're not getting away from me this time. Your mother can't protect you now."

"No," Luna shook her head, fighting against the painful hold he had on her arm "Rose? Rose… Let go of me. Rose!"

"Shut up, brat," the man hissed, shaking the girl harshly "Wouldn't want me to hurt you, would you?" His head snapped up when he heard a quiet groan and without letting go of his precious cargo, he quickly grabbed a branch, shoving it into the vampire's back. He made sure not to hit anything vital… much "Well, what do you say we get out of here, hm?" He caressed Luna's blonde hair, smiling a false smile.

Luna whimpered at the grip and the sight of Rose lying on the ground with a branch sticking out of her "Let me go," she demanded with a shaking voice, fighting against the man's hands "Leave me alone."

The smile fell from his lips as the brat continued to trash, almost getting free. He grumbled under his breath, backhanding the child as hard as he could. The four-year-old slumped unconscious, only being held up by his hand on her arm.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I forgot to say the last time but… I thought about the Sequels. I do have some ideas for different ones and will think about writing them but the main Sequel that I'll definitely write is a Twilight story. It's the one I had planned from the beginning and yeah. So… We'll see what happens with the other ones. Since I have like a crap ton of other ideas as well.


	25. Jack the Kidnapper

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, for this chapter I had to bump up the rating to M. There are some not so nice topics in there and… yeah. It's nothing graphic or anything. Just the topic that could upset people… 
> 
> WARNING: Child Abuse and attempted rape of a child (Sorry, guys)… I'll mark the scene and if you don't want to read it then I'll make sure that it's skippable so you don't miss anything important.
> 
> I apologize in advance. I didn't make it too bad but I thought I'd put in the warning nevertheless.
> 
> Enjoy,
> 
> Nick

 

The talk with Klaus had taken longer than either Stefan or Damon had expected and by the end of it, they were smarter. The Hybrid wasn't that bad of a person… Just – As Rebekah said. Mikael had put the guy through too much shit and ruined their family. But what Klaus explained to them was that they should expect to have the entire family to deal with soon, since he only waited to undagger them because of the danger Mikael proved to them. Even Damon couldn't argue with that since he and his brother would have been dead had it not been for the Original.

When the older Salvatore brother checked his phone around fifteen minutes after the Hybrid had left, he blinked. Rose should have been here by now. Normally, he wouldn't be too worried but since the traffic in Mystic Falls was nearly non-existent and the older vampire had been really close to town already, this was a reason to freak out. Damon dialled Rose's number, letting it ring until voicemail picked up "Dammit, Rose," Damon cursed, hanging up to try again "Come on, pick up…"

"What's going on?" Stefan frowned, walking into the room. The younger brother had taken a shower, trying to get the stiffness out of his neck.

"Rose isn't answering her phone," Damon told him urgently "They should have been here by now."

The younger brother tilted his head "Are you sure you got the time right?"

Damon shoved his phone at Stefan, showing him that Rose had called him over half an hour ago, saying she would be there soon "I didn't…"

"Okay, come on," Stefan sighed. This was the last thing they needed at the moment. He had wanted to go and look for Rebekah who hadn't been back since she stormed out on her father earlier but Luna was more important " There are two ways to get to the Boarding House through town. We'll take one route each and meet up at the town sign."

"Alright," the oldest Salvatore nodded and was already outside before Stefan could say anything else. Damon had a bad feeling about this, so he drove through town as quickly as he could without drawing too much attention to himself. He reached the 'Welcome to Mystic Falls' sign in less than fifteen minutes and immediately jumped out of the car when he saw the figure lying on the ground "Rose," he gasped, pulling the stake out of his girlfriend's back. As soon as that was done and Rose was still unconscious, he looked around for Luna "Luna? Luna?" There was nothing. No answer, no movement, nothing. The car was empty and there were no tracks leading into the woods or anything he could use to track his niece.

Another car came to a halt next to Damon's and Stefan was next to his brother in less than a second "What happened?"

"I don't know," Damon shook his head, cradling Rose in his arms "Luna is gone…"

"What do you mean, gone?" he demanded, running around the area to see whether he could find the four-year-old.

The older of the two closed his eyes "She isn't here, Stefan and I have no idea where she could be… Maybe when Rose wakes up."

"We can't wait that long, Damon," Stefan pointed out, pulling out his phone "I'm calling Ric and tell him to get Rose's car. Then the two of us are going to go and find out what we're going to do."

Damon swallowed and nodded, his mind swimming with all the things that could have happened. He picked up his girlfriend, carefully easing her into the passenger seat of his car "A witch. A witch could help."

"Elijah," Stefan gasped "Okay, I think I have an idea… I'll tell you at home. Be careful."

As soon as they were back at the Boarding House, Damon turned to Stefan "Tell me that plan of yours," he barked, no longer trying to be calm about this.

"You're going to go to Klaus, get Elijah while I distract him," Stefan told him "Rebekah is gone and I think that's one of the few things that could get Klaus to come with me."

The older Salvatore debated for a moment before he nodded "Alright. I think that could work… Let's go." He shoot one more look at Rose before running to the Mansion Klaus was staying at since he got back. Damon watched from out the way as Stefan walked up to the front door, rapidly talking to Klaus who got more and more concerned as the minutes ticked by. Finally, the Hybrid nodded, following Stefan back to his car. Before the younger of the brothers got into the car, he looked up at where Damon was and nodded, mouthing for him to hurry. Damon waited until the car was out of sight and snuck into the house, alert in case anyone was inside. It took him a good ten minutes to even find the coffins and another five to find Elijah and pulled the dagger out. He looked at the metal for a moment before sliding underneath the Original's pillow, picking him up.

He got to the Boarding House just as Elijah let out a low groan "What?"

Damon immediately set him down "I need your help."

"Damon?" Elijah blinked before memories seemed to slam into his head "That little…"

"I get it," the younger vampire cut him off "Klaus is an ass… Blah, blah, blah. This isn't important right now. Luna is missing."

The Original froze "What?"

"Rose got attacked outside of town and Luna is missing," Damon repeated "We need your help."

* * *

After Jenna went to help Ric with picking up the car Stefan told him to pick up, she drove over to the Lake House to check up on Elena. The Doppelgänger had been very withdrawn recently and Jenna was worried about her, so it was only natural that she would decide to go and try to talk to her "Elena?" she called, walking through the front door. Alaric was waiting for her in the car, not wanting to interrupt the two of them "Elena? It's Jenna. I want to talk to you about something." When no one answered, she frowned. That was weird. She was sure that Elena told her she would be here the whole week since she didn't have to be at school for another two weeks.

As any responsible adult would do, Jenna walked through the house, making sure everything was alright and Elena really wasn't here. When she reached one of the guest bedrooms, she gasped, seeing a blonde girl lying on the bed with a silver dagger sticking out of her chest. The red-haired woman stumbled out of the house, grabbing Alaric's arm without saying a word "Jenna?" Ric blinked, getting pulled up the stairs by his shellshocked girlfriend "Jenna? What's wrong?" He froze when she pointed to the bed and groaned "What did you do now, Elena?"

"Do you know who she is?" Jenna questioned quietly, staring at the blonde.

The Hunter nodded "That's Rebekah. Elijah's sister and an Original."

"Oh, God." The woman leaned against the wall "What do we do now?"

"Undagger her," Ric said without the slightest amount of hesitation. While he might not have been around the Originals too much, he knew that it was a bad idea to mess with them. Especially since both Elijah and Rebekah had gotten really close to Luna.

Jenna shifted "Not here though. Let's get her closer to Klaus' Mansion."

"And do what?" Alaric questioned "Abandon her in the woods?"

"Yes," the red-haired woman nodded "If we write a note in Elena's name… Telling her that she undaggered her and was sorry…?"

Ric shook his head "This is a bad idea, Jenna."

"I don't know what else to do, Ric," Jenna argued, staring at her boyfriend. She wasn't too fond of Elena after the stunts she had pulled recently but the girl was still her niece.

* * *

Luna woke up slowly, her head hurting pretty badly. She looked around quietly, not sure where she was. The room was small and dingy with concrete walls. One door across from the mattress she was lying on, no window. The four-year-old stiffened when the memories came back quickly. The bad man had shown up again and he hurt Rosie… Was this where she was? Luna whimpered quietly, curling into a tight ball.

A few minutes later, the door opened and the bad man walked in "Sleeping beauty is awake," he remarked in amusement, closing the door behind him "Hello, Luna. Missed me?" When the girl just stared at her with wide eyes, Jack let out a low laugh "Don't be like that now. I'm sure we will have a lot of fun together." With that, he grabbed the four-year-old's hair, dragging her out of the door and up some stairs. The man pushed Luna down onto the floor, making her head hit the corner of the coffee table.

"Leave me alone," Luna demanded, crawling backwards, hitting the edge of the couch.

"Oh, dear one. I'm never going to leave you alone now that I have you," Jack smirked "Your mother might have tried to help you but I got rid of her…" The child stiffened when she realized what the man in front of her had just said. He was the one who killed her mommy "That bitch got in my way. It was her fault for trying to stop me."

Luna's eyes welled up with tears, shaking her head violently "No."

"Yes," the man mocked, stalking closer to her with a 'pleasant' smile "Now, what to do with you?"

"Let me go," the four-year-old pleaded, not even trying to hide the tears streaming down her face "Dami and Steffi will find me."

Jack's smile fell, his eyes narrowing. His hand shot out, backhanding Luna across the face again. This time though, he made sure not to knock her unconscious "Don't talk about them. You're mine." Ever since he met the brat's mother, he had wanted her. Too bad for him that Maria had figured him out and protected her daughter as well as she could, even going as far as to send her to her uncle after her death. That all eventually played into Jack's hand though and here they were.

_BAD SCENE: WARNING SKIP IF YOU DON'T WANT TO READ_

_Luna was trying to back up, pressing herself even closer to the couch when Jack came close to her. The man pushed the coffee table out of the way, gripping at the four-year-old's shirt "Come here," he commanded, his eyes flashing. Luna stiffened, letting herself be pulled up. Her mind had gone back to when the bad man was still living with her and her mother. Whenever his eyes flashed like this, she knew that she was in trouble and about to be hurt. Jack pulled off the child's shirt and tried to finish undressing her. As soon as his hand touched the flesh of Luna's stomach, she startled, instinctively biting him in the arm. Jack let go of her, cursing loudly._

_It was then that the girl slid underneath the couch, pressing herself as far back as she could go. She let out a whimper when she felt her bones shifting. Luna knew that she was changing but she was too scared to do anything else. Jack had touched her, he was trying to hurt her in the way he hurt her mommy._

" _You little bitch," Jack spat, practically throwing the couch away, revealing the tiny wolf cub cowering against the wall "What the…?" He stopped for a short moment, staring at the wolf in surprise before he shook his head, grabbing onto the scruff of Luna's neck tightly "You're going to pay for what you did."_

_Jack threw Luna against a wall and kick her a few times and when he was eventually done with punishing Luna, her fur was spotted with blood and she was curled up on the floor in the tightest ball she could manage "I hope you learned your lesson," the man scoffed, looking down at her with merciless eyes "Change back. Now."_

_END BAD SCENE_

Several minutes later, the front door of the small cabin burst open and before Jack could react, he slumped to the ground with his neck snapped and a furious Elijah standing over him. The Original had smelt the… creature from outside and since it seemed as if his niece's kidnapper was one of his younger brother's abominations. Elijah quickly scanned the room, seeing the pile of clothes on the ground that obviously belonged to Luna and the small wolf form of his niece "Luna," he whispered, crouching down next to her. The Original reached out to pick her up, hissing when she bit into his arm with as much strength as she could. Luna crawled away from him, trying to curl into a tighter ball despite the pain she was obviously in. Elijah closed his eyes for a moment, breathing deeply, trying to calm himself down "It's alright, little Moon," he soothed "It's Elijah. Let's get you out of here, hm?" He pulled off his jacket, quickly wrapping it around Luna, making sure to avoid another bite. The wolf cub struggled in his grip, trying to get away from him. Elijah just cradled her against his chest, carefully bringing her to his car that was parked a little bit away. To make it more comfortable for her, he pulled several blankets from the trunk and bunched them up in the legroom of the passenger seat. As soon as she was settled, his jacket practically swallowing her up, Elijah stormed back to the cabin where he left the kidnapper. The Original snapped his neck several more times, almost shattering it on top of breaking some other bones as well. The man was quickly dumped in the backseat within arm's reach in case he'd wake up on the ride back.

During the drive, Elijah kept up a steady stream of conversation with Luna who had somewhat calmed down by now. She was shivering in the nest of blankets, shock setting in. The only thing that was helping to keep her grounded was Elijah's voice, talking about everything and nothing.

As soon as he reached his younger brother's Mansion, Elijah was already by the passenger door, making sure to cradle Luna in his arms again. He sent one distasteful look at the temporarily dead Hybrid in the backseat before walking through the front door. One step into the foyer, the older Mikaelson was immediately accosted by Rebekah "What happened?"

"Here," Elijah murmured, gently handing her Luna "I've got to get the… man out of the car. Be careful with her. I think she's still hurt."

His younger sister gasped, seeing the tiny wolf wrapped into the jacket "Is that Luna?" That got the attention of their other siblings who had been undaggered a few hours earlier about an hour after Klaus had noticed Elijah missing from his coffin. Kol and Finn had just woken up when Rebekah walked in, looking a mixture between confused and angry.

"What's going on here?" Klaus frowned, looking from Rebekah to the still open front door.

Elijah walked in, dumping the kidnapper on the ground in front of his brother "This… man here decided it was a great idea to kidnap Luna."

"Where is she then?" the Original Hybrid tilted his head in confusion.

The older of the two went over to Rebekah, lifting the wolf cub out of his jacket, mindful of not being bitten again "I believe this answers your question, Niklaus?" Elijah turned to look at his sister "Could you call the Salvatore brothers and tell them that Luna is safe and the person in question is going to pay? They may come to see her tomorrow."

"You know that they're going to want to come right now," Rebekah pointed out.

Elijah closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose "She obviously isn't well enough at the moment. I really don't want to overwhelm her. They can come tomorrow morning. Just…"

"I'll tell them," the blonde promised, walking past Kol who was blinking at the wolf in his older brother's arms in confusion.

Luna was carried to the living room where Elijah set her down on the couch, crouching in front of her "Will you change back for me, little Moon?" The wolf just stared at him, curling up again "Luna, please change back."

Klaus had been staring at the wolf cub since he caught sight of her. There was no way this was the little girl that had played with Caroline, right? The Salvatore's niece? It was impossible for a wolf to be this young… Unless… Unless Elijah and Rebekah really had been telling the truth and the child was his. He recalled watching her, studying the features he could remember. Oh, God… How was this possible? Vampires couldn't have children and he had never wanted any children. They were noisy and annoying for the most part. Although… With the little time he had spent with Luna as Alaric, she had been well behaved, never once acting the way little brats normally would. The sight of the wolf also triggered a memory Klaus didn't know he had. He remembered playing with her the night he first turned. He remembered letting her win in the mock fights they had and her climbing on top of him. He also remembered the feeling that he had in his wolf form. The little cub felt like family like she was part of himself "Oh, God," he breathed, his eyes still on the little wolf "I'll take care of this, Elijah. Make sure you lock up that thing until I'm back."

Elijah raised his eyebrow, seeing the look in Klaus' eyes "Alright. Do not hurt her. Come on, Kol."

"What the hell is going on here?" the youngest Mikaelson brother demanded, being herded away from the perplexing scene. Finn had retreated to his room, not wanting to be anywhere near whatever drama his siblings had gotten into again.

"I'll explain everything… Just help me with this."

As soon as they were gone, Klaus knelt down in front of the couch "I'm so sorry that I forgot about you. That I didn't know… If I hadn't…" He broke off, shaking his head. Luna looked up at him, stumbling to her feet and over to him. She bumped against his hand, whimpering lowly "Will you change for me, little one? I would love to finally meet my daughter." The little wolf widened her eyes, hiding her head underneath her paws. She didn't want to change back. Changing back meant thinking about it and hurting more. Klaus sighed and got up. He glanced at the door to the living room and bit his lips when his bones started breaking. It wasn't nearly as painful as the first time he turned but it still wasn't the most pleasant feeling. As soon as he was in his wolf form, he jumped onto the couch, curling up around his little girl. Luna startled, not having noticed what Klaus had been doing and as soon as her eyes met the blue-green eyes of the bigger wolf and whined. Klaus nudged her with his nose, licking her small head a few times. Eventually, Luna relaxed, snuggling into his warmth. He could practically see her drifting off and as soon as she was asleep, she turned back. Apparently, the girl had her turning down since she barely even stirred when her bones shifted. Klaus tugged the throw blanket over the naked girl, making sure she was covered before he carefully slid from the couch, making his way to his room to change.

The whole thing didn't take him more than five minutes but when he was back in the living room, Luna was whimpering in her sleep, shaking her head with tears running down her face. Klaus hesitated for a moment before he scooped her into his arms, whispering into her ear. She mumbled in her sleep, begging the bad man not to hurt her as he did her mommy. The four-year-old finally startled awake, panicking when she felt arms around her. She was about to try and bite the bad man again when the voice registered "Shh. It's alright, Luna. You're alright." Klaus ran his hand over her hair until she stopped shaking. It was then and there that he decided this bastard would die the most painful death he could have. He didn't even have to be told what happened. It was enough that Luna was having nightmares and the wounds that were still on her body weren't helping the matter either.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry again. For doing that to Luna. On the bright side… Klaus believes she's his daughter now? That's a good thing, right? Oh, I'm such a bad person… But trust me. Writing this was freaking hard and I hated every moment of it.
> 
> Oh, also I have counted the votes for the story ideas from Wattpad and here:
> 
> The top stories are Experience A New Life What If, Ruby Red, Lady of Death, A Veela's Dream, Immortal Child, A Hybrid's Star, God of War and his Magical Seer, The Lost Descendant, Song Bird and The Secret That Is Bluebell.
> 
> Now, I'm not sure when I'll post any of them. Definitely not until I'm a bit further with several other stories. Just wanted to know which stories held the interest of the people, so I could outline them.


	26. Mikaelson Family Reunion

Klaus snapped out of his vengeful thoughts when Luna stirred next to him "Hey," he murmured, looking down at the small girl. He pulled the blanket around her tighter, drawing her onto his lap. He would have to find her some clothes… Maybe Rebekah could get some later on "I'm so sorry, Luna."

"Why?"

"Because this is my fault," the Hybrid sighed. He dropped Maria as soon as he was done with her and it was him who changed the bastard into a Hybrid.

Luna blinked up at him sleepily, her inner wolf curling up in satisfaction of being this close to their sire "'m tired."

Klaus laughed lightly and stood up with the four-year-old in his arms "Well, let's get you to a bed." As soon as he walked past the door to the basement, he saw three of his Hybrids mingling around the door "What's going on here?"

The group whirled around in surprise "Klaus…" Their gaze fell on the girl in their sire's arms "So that's the girl Jack was talking about."

"What are you talking about?" the Original frowned.

Dean licked his lips nervously "Jack… He wasn't a part of any pack. We gave him a place to stay for a few days and he got drunk. Keep talking about some bitch taking his girl away from him. The things he said… I –" He broke off, meeting the child's scared gaze "I don't think I should tell you in front of her."

"Luna?" Klaus spoke up, drawing his daughter's attention to him "Will you tell me what Dean is talking about?"

The girl shook her head harshly, her hair flying around "No," she mumbled before hiding her face "Don't wanna."

"Luna," the Original scolded sternly before looking at the pale face of his Hybrids who were standing across from him "I will bring her upstairs and you will tell me what's happening here."

"Yes, Klaus," Dean sighed, exchanging a look with his two pack members. The three of them watched their sire, walking up the stairs before looking back to the basement door.

Tony grimaced "I can't see that conversation going over well."

"Me neither," Chris agreed, running a hand over his head "How the hell do you tell someone about…"

"You know, I'm really glad that I'm not that bastard down there," Dean mumbled "Because from what I've heard around town… It's not only Klaus and his brother but also the Salvatores and half of Mystic Falls' Supernatural population. That girl is more than popular around here."

Chris glanced over his shoulder "Well, she's cute. I guess that makes it easy?"

"Maybe…"

"Are you three done gossiping?" They heard Klaus' voice from behind them "Mind telling me what you didn't want to tell me in front of my daughter?"

Tony looked to his pack members and then to his sire "Listen, this… This isn't…"

"Just spit it out," the Original huffed, crossing his arms.

"He told us that she was his," Dean burst out, looking vaguely sick at the memory "That he would… he would take her when he got her back."

Klaus' eyes narrowed in anger "Explain."

"Jack said that he would… rape her," Chris breathed, stepping away from the dangerous man in front of him "That he killed her mother because she kept him away from his 'sweet girl'."

There was a crash from downstairs along with a scream. The three Hybrids turned to the door in confusion and looked back to their seething sire "That would be Elijah. Excuse me."

"I think we just signed his death warrant," Tony whispered, causing the other two to shrug.

Downstairs, Klaus pulled Elijah away from the temporarily dead bastard, his eyes falling on his youngest brother who had just been standing there, watching "Easy, Elijah. Kol, don't just stand there, would you?"

Kol shrugged his shoulders with a smirk "I was enjoying the show."

"He…" Elijah broke off, hitting through the stone wall behind him "That… How dare…"

"He will get what he deserves," the Original Hybrid murmured, glaring at the man with hard eyes "I never thought I'd be the reasonable one… Luna is more important at the moment. Also, don't you think the Salvatores want a piece of him as well?"

The suited Original blinked "Who are you and what have you done with my brother?"

Klaus rolled his eyes "He'll die and he'll suffer but it'll be way more fun to get everyone in. I'm sure Damon will have quite some… inventive ideas."

"I have a feeling if we unleash Kol and Damon on him there won't be anything left," Elijah muttered, running a hand through his hair. He looked at the shackled man in disgust before shaking his head "I'm going to check up on Luna."

* * *

The next morning, Damon and Stefan arrived as soon as the sun started rising with Rose in tow "Where is she?" Damon demanded, stalking up to where Elijah was standing by the front door.

"She's with Niklaus, Rebekah and Kol in the living room…" the Original gestured "Follow me and Niklaus and I will tell you everything. There's also the matter of the… man who caused all of this."

The three followed Elijah into the house, looking around as they went. Stefan nodded at the Hybrids they passed and saw a group of them standing guard at a door "Is he in there?"

"Yes," Elijah nodded and walked through the door "Luna, look who's here."

The four-year-old looked up from where Kol was talking to her and smiled happily "Uncle Dami," she called, wriggling off Klaus' lap to run to her uncle.

"Luna," Damon mumbled, burying his face in the little girl's hair "Are you alright?" He pushed her away a little and trailed his eyes over her body.

"I – I'm fine, Dami," the little blonde whispered, looking down at her feet. She had woken up several times during the night, dreaming of the bad man. Every time she had woken up, either Elijah or her father had been there to sooth her back to sleep. They had tried to talk to her about what happened but the four-year-old shut them out completely.

Stefan placed his hand on his niece's head "Liar. But I'm glad you're alright, little Moon. Damon, Rose and I were so worried."

"Bekah, could you take Luna upstairs?" Elijah asked, looking at his sister with a questioning look.

Rose looked from the girl she had failed to the blonde Original "Can I come? I – I need to talk to Luna."

"Sure," Rebekah shrugged, hoisting Luna into her arms. The two female vampires went upstairs with the little girl tucked securely into Rebekah's side.

As soon as they reached the blonde Original's room, Rose knelt down on the floor in front of where Luna was sitting. The four-year-old tilted her head, looking at the older woman with a hint of confusion "Rosie?"

"I'm so sorry, Luna," Rose whispered "So, so sorry. If I hadn't… I…"

The little blonde slid from the bed and into her aunt's lap "Not your fault."

"No. It is… I shouldn't have…"

"Rosie," Luna mumbled, burying her head in the vampire's shoulder "He hurt you."

Rose let out a slightly hysterical laugh "I'm fine, Luna. You should be mad at me."

Rebekah placed her hand on Rose's shoulder "What happened isn't your fault," she told the younger vampire "This would have happened whether you wanted it or not. That man is… insane and trust me when I say this. He will be punished and wish for death by the end of the next hour."

"Good. It's nothing that asshole doesn't deserve." Rose froze, looking at Luna "You didn't hear that."

* * *

Downstairs, Damon was desperately trying to hold himself together "You mean to tell me that one of your Hybrids kidnapped my niece?" he hissed through clenched teeth.

"Yes," Klaus answered, looking at the older Salvatore "A couple of the other Hybrids told me that he has been talking about Luna before I changed them. He killed Maria to make sure that she wouldn't be in the way."

Stefan closed his eyes "He killed her because he wanted her daughter? Why wait as long as he did?"

It was Kol who spoke up. Elijah had explained everything to him. From Luna being Klaus' daughter to her having her witch gene locked away. The youngest male Mikaelson was pretty sure that he knew how to fix that but for now, they had other problems "She was too well protected before. He was only a werewolf and not as strong as all the people who were around the girl normally."

"And we left her alone," Damon mumbled, sinking down on one of the sofas.

"You had to choose the lesser of two evils," the Original Hybrid pointed out "Mikael would have killed her. While she might be traumatised now – and trust me, I'm not too happy about all of this – at least she's alive."

Stefan looked at his old friend "What made you believe that she's yours?"

"I believe I can explain that," Elijah sighed "When I found her, Luna was in wolf form. She didn't want to change back and I assume it's not everyday you see a four-year-old werewolf."

Klaus nodded "That and I remembered what happened the night of the ritual."

"Anyway," Kol drawled "Can we get to punishment now? I'm looking forward on seeing just how… durable those Hybrids of yours are, Nik."

Damon looked at the Original with interest in his eyes "What's your plan?"

Elijah stepped between them before Kol could say anything else "First, I need you to go and talk to Luna, Damon. We don't know what happened exactly. I went through the parasite's mind last night but it was hard to tell what was real and what wasn't. Everytime we tried to bring it up, she froze up."

"You mean that you don't know if she was…" the older Salvatore broke off, swallowing heavily "I – I'll talk to her but I'm not sure if Luna will talk to me about it." He looked at Elijah "After all, it was you who got her to talk about the 'bad man'."

"It's all I ask," the suited Original nodded, gesturing for Damon to go upstairs.

* * *

When Elena walked back into the Lake House, she panicked when Jenna was sitting on the bed of the guest bedroom "Jenna."

The woman looked up at Elena, her gaze hard "What the hell were you thinking, Elena? Do you have any idea what you did?"

"Where's Rebekah?" the Doppelgänger asked, looking around the room as if to see whether the Original was hidden somewhere.

"She's back where she belongs," Jenna murmured "Ric helped me. I undaggered her and wrote a note, apologizing in your name. Said that you made a mistake. Elena, you can't keep doing that. The Originals are powerful. You don't want them as enemies."

Elena huffed, crossing her arms "I don't need you to tell me what to do."

"If Klaus finds out how you treated Luna, you're going to die. I don't like what you're doing but you're my niece. I can't lose you," the red head shouted, jabbing her finger in Elena's chest "He's not harming you… Can't you just give it a rest and leave them in peace?"

"Klaus killed me," the Doppelgänger pointed out with a sneer. She was quite shocked when Bonnie found out that the brat is Klaus' spawn. Not that it really surprised her… She seemed to be just like him "He killed my mother and my father. I want him to pay for that and if the way to do exactly that is through the brat then so be it."

Jenna shook her head in disbelief "What the hell happened to you? Luna is four, Elena. There's nothing you can say that justifies hurting her the way you already did. Please, if you won't stop for me… Do it for Jeremy. He already lost so much."

* * *

Surprisingly, Jack lasted the whole day. Or maybe it wasn't as surprising since Kol and Damon tested quite a few torture methods on the asshole while Klaus and Elijah made sure to get some blows in as well.

That evening, when it was time for the Salvatores and Rose to leave, Damon went to pick Luna up. Elijah held out his hand "She's staying here."

Damon frowned "What?"

"You're welcome to come and visit but I think it is safer for Luna to remain here with us," the suited Original pointed out.

"We had a deal," Damon hissed angrily, glaring at the man in front of him.

Elijah crossed his arms, avoiding his younger brother's gaze "That was before you allowed her to get kidnapped. Also, you can still visit. We're not taking her from you…"

Stefan looked from Damon to the Originals and to Luna who was curled up on Kol's lap, listening to his story "Damon."

"No," the older Salvatore shook his head "Tomorrow is Luna's…"

"It's of no matter," Elijah dismissed "You may leave now."

Damon snorted and shook his head. If they didn't want to know that Luna's birthday was the next day, that was fine with him "Alright. If you think so." He knelt down in front of Luna, pressing a kiss to her forehead "I'll see you tomorrow, little Moon. Behave."

She frowned up at him with a cute pout on her lips "Where you going?"

They were interrupted when the door to the hallway opened and a blonde woman stepped into the room with Finn behind her. Rebekah gasped "Mother?"

Esther barely acknowledged any of her children, striding to stand in front of Klaus. Damon and Stefan exchanged a look before leaving the room quickly. They met Mikael… That was more than enough since there was a chance that woman would try to kill them as well "Look at me," she demanded, staring down at her son "Do you know why I'm here?"

"You're here to kill me," Klaus pressed out, trying to suppress the tears that were threatening to fall from his eyes.

Luna fought to get away from Kol, stumbling over to her father. Her wolf was pacing, wanting to comfort her family "No."

Esther looked down at the girl in surprise "Who is that?"

"Mother, that's Luna. She's Niklaus' daughter," Elijah spoke up as Klaus lifted the young child onto his lap.

The Original Witch blinked in shock. She had kept an eye on her children, seen the monsters they had become but she never knew that this little girl existed. Esther looked at the four-year-old comforting her son and wondered whether she should go through with her plan. No, she was sure that she would go through with her plan. Her children had upset the balance and they had to die for it. The child would have to go too. Every child of Niklaus' would prove to be dangerous as well.

 


	27. Birthday Surprises

 

The morning of Luna's birthday was a quiet one. Klaus had brought Luna to his room just after Esther had arrived and stayed with her, just talking for a while until the four-year-old fell asleep on him. It came to a surprise to all of the Mikaelsons when Damon, Stefan and Caroline came with several wrapped gifts in their hands.

"What are you doing here?" Rebekah frowned at them.

Damon shrugged "It's Luna's birthday. Why wouldn't we be here."

"It's what?" Elijah questioned, stepping out of the living room.

"You would have known if you hadn't shut me up yesterday," the older Salvatore pointed out in annoyance "Luna is five today. Can we give her the presents now?"

Elijah licked his lips "Yes, yes. Of course." He sent a look to Rebekah who nodded. The female Original would go out and get Luna some presents from all of them. She sent a quick text to Kol, Klaus and Elijah, telling them to send her a text with the specifications before walking out. Rebekah needed a dress for the Ball anyway and so did Luna. The Mikaelson siblings were less than pleased about the whole thing but their mother insisted on throwing a Ball tonight.

"Hey, Little Moon," Damon knelt down in front of his niece "Happy birthday."

Luna threw her arms around her uncle "Thank you, Uncle Dami."

"Luna, why didn't you tell us?" Klaus questioned, looking down at his daughter.

The now five-year-old shrugged "Not important. Don't like my birthday…"

"Well, we can't have that now, can we?" Caroline spoke up cheerfully, holding up four small boxes "Here. These are from me, Tyler, Alaric and Jenna. Might want to open Damon's gift first though."

Stefan put down a bigger box with three smaller boxes on top "Here you go, Luna."

"The bigger one is the one I wanted to give you before Rose took you to Disney," Damon explained "The two here are from Stefan and I and this one is from Rose. She says sorry that she couldn't be here."

Luna chewed on her lip and grabbed the smaller boxes first. She wasn't used to getting as many presents. There were more than she got in several years from her mother. Not that she minded. Luna had seen her mother struggling and as such didn't expect to get presents for her birthday or Christmas. The first box she unwrapped was a thick silver bracelet that was a little bit too big for her wrist but not enough to slip from her hand. The second and third boxes held a heart charm that Damon strung up on the chord for her and a rabbit charm that joined the first. Luna looked up at her uncle uncertainly, looking at the bigger box.

"Go on," Damon urged gently and watched as Luna unwrapped the skates he had gotten her "What do you think?"

"I love it," Luna whispered, tears filling her eyes. How did he know that she wanted skates? Ever since she first saw children skating when she lived with her mother…

Caroline knelt down "Here. Open these next."

After opening all the presents she had gotten, Luna had a pair of skates and a charms bracelet with several charms on it. A heart from Stefan and Damon, a rabbit from Rose, an angel from Caroline, a moon from Jenna, Cinderella's carriage from Alaric – that one made her laugh. She made the man watch the movie with her so often that by the time Stefan returned, he could repeat the film line by line – and a wolf from Tyler.

Elijah smiled at the small girl who was playing with her bracelet happily before turning to their visitors "Our mother has ordered a Ball to be arranged this evening. The three of you are invited as well."

"A Ball?" Damon tilted his head "Seriously? She comes back from the dead and throws a Ball?"

Kol snorted "That was my reaction as well."

Klaus looked at Caroline nervously before glancing at his family "Caroline. Can I talk to you for a moment?"

"Erm," the blonde girl frowned "Sure… I guess."

The Hybrid lead her to his art room, shifting around "So, erm, do you – I mean, you don't have to say yes but…"

"Klaus, just spit it out," Caroline cut him off in amusement. She was pretty sure she knew what he was trying to say but that didn't mean that she would make it easy for him. At least, she didn't have to hate him for not recognizing Luna as his daughter anymore. Actually, maybe and just maybe she did think he was cute.

"Alright," the Original breathed out "Would you like to go to the Ball with me?"

The blonde baby vampire smiled "I would love that." Then she frowned "Wait. I don't have a dress and tonight doesn't really leave much room for me to… Oh, my God. I have to go shopping and…"

Klaus let out a small laugh "Calm down, love. Rebekah is out at the moment and I asked her to bring you a dress. If that is alright, I mean."

"Well, I'm not complaining… I think."

* * *

Esther was walking around her study, getting everything ready for this evening. She had sent out Finn with an invitation for the Doppelgänger and just hoped that she would come. Her children had killed enough and she was not going to sit by any longer and let that happened.

The Original Witch drew up everything for the linking spell and – after a moment or two – she added Luna's name as well. It wasn't that she took pride in hurting an innocent girl but the woman couldn't allow her children to live on, not even through their children.

"Mother?" Finn asked as he entered the study "Is everything ready?"

"Yes, Finn," Esther nodded "It is up to the Doppelgänger now. Do you believe she will help?"

The oldest Mikaelson inclined his head "From what I've seen and heard she has been exiled from her former friends and the Salvatores for hurting that child of Niklaus'." His voice held wonder and disdain in equal parts. How his younger brother had spawned a child, he didn't know and Finn didn't really care much either. The girl wasn't his niece, no matter what his siblings thought.

* * *

Evening approached quickly and everyone was getting ready for the Ball with Rebekah helping Luna with her dress. The one Rebekah had picked was navy blue with feather-like ruffles at the skirt and black boots that almost reached the five-year-old's knees.

While she was getting dressed, Luna was preoccupied with the rest of the presents she got from the Mikaelsons. There was a delicate necklace from Elijah, earrings from Rebekah, an Art kit from Klaus – This one she loves especially. Her mother had told her very little about her father but one thing was that he loved Art. The last present though was the most precious. All the jewellery aside, Kol had given her one of the grimoires he had in his possession and promised her to teach her everything he knew once her magic was unlocked.

"Luna, I'm going to have to do your hair," the female Original sighed when the girl kept fidgeting.

The five-year-old shook her head "No. I don't want to…"

Rebekah groaned "At least let me brush it." Luna bit her lip thoughtfully but after a minute or so she nodded reluctantly. She didn't like playing doll.

* * *

"Uncle Dami," Luna exclaimed, running up to her uncle happily. He was standing with Rose close to the entrance of the mansion, turning when he heard her shout.

Damon scooped her up, placing her on his hip with a grin "Hello, little Moon."

The five-year-old wrapped her arms around his neck and pouted "Bekah played doll," she mumbled into his shoulder "I didn't like it."

"Well, you look beautiful," the older Salvatore told her seriously "Like a princess."

"No princess," Luna shook her head "Don't have a crown."

Stefan let out a small laugh from behind "She's got you there, Damon."

"Steffi," the blonde child cheered, leaning over to wrap her arms around him.

"Damon," Carol greeted, walking up to the three Salvatores and Rose "How are you?"

The oldest Salvatore looked at the Mayor with a small smile "Carol. Hanging out with your new besties?"

Rose sighed exasperatedly "Damon."

The woman rolled her eyes with a sigh "I'm the mayor, Damon. When the oldest, deadliest, family of vampires move into your town, you welcome them with a smile."

"They're not that bad," Stefan pointed out.

It was then that Kol walked up to them, kissing Carol's hand in greeting "Mayor Lockwood. We haven't formally met. Kol Mikaelson. I hope your lovely town embraces us just as much as we plan to embrace it." He turned his head to see Luna in Stefan's arms "So that's where you ran off to, little one. Rebekah was looking for you." He tapped her nose with a grin "I approve."

Carol looked from one vampire to the other in confusion "I'm missing something."

"Oh, right," Damon spoke up, scratching the back of his neck "Luna is Klaus' daughter."

"Pardon?"

Kol looked at her in hidden disdain "You heard him. Do you mind?" he asked, gesturing to Luna "I'm going to need to borrow Luna for a little while."

On the way to the staircase, Kol walked past Elena and Finn who were conversing quietly. The Doppelgänger looked up at the oldest Mikaelson "Is she here?"

"If you wish to see my mother, you need to come with me," Finn pointed out before turning to Elijah when he got everyone's attention "Excuse me."

All the Originals had gathered on the staircase with Luna standing in front of Niklaus, his hands resting on her shoulders, while Esther walked down the staircase "Welcome," Elijah called out "Thank you for joining us. You know, whenever my mother brings our family together like this, it's tradition for us to commence the evening with a dance." His eyes caught the Doppelgänger in the crowd and blinked in confusion "Tonight's pick is a centuries-old waltz, so if all of you could please find yourselves a partner, please join us in the ballroom."

Kol held out his hand to Luna with a flourish, seeing that Klaus had gone with Caroline and Rebekah with Stefan "May I have this dance?"

Luna wriggled her nose "How do you dance?"

"I'll show you," the youngest male Mikaelson promised "Come here." He lifted Luna up a little, making her stand on his feet. It wasn't like she was heavy enough to hurt him or anything and he couldn't care less about his shoes. As the music started, Kol took a place to the side of the room, out of the way of the other dancers.

When Rebekah looked up from Stefan, she saw her older brother patiently teaching Luna the steps of the dance "Look," she whispered to her date and then looked to her brothers who were dancing around her "Over there."

"That is surprisingly cute," Elijah remarked in surprise.

"He has taken to her, hasn't he?" Klaus murmured, looking at his youngest brother with narrowed eyes. He was a little jealous but then again… Luna deserved all the attention she got and since he was with Caroline tonight, someone had to look after the five-year-old. A part of him did feel bad for not spending time with his daughter on her birthday though.

* * *

Upstairs, Finn lead Elena into his mother's study, gesturing for her to enter. Esther was holding a bundle of sage, holding it into a candle "It's only sage," the witch remarked, seeing the Doppelgänger's apprehensive look. If everything would go to plan, the girl would agree readily. If not… Well, she would get the blood one way or another "I've spelled it so we can speak freely without fear of being overheard. That'll be all Finn, thank you." Her oldest son walked out of the room, undoubtedly making sure to stay in front of the door "You must have a million questions for me, Elena. Please." Esther gestured towards the sofa, sinking down herself.

Elena licked her lips nervously "How are you alive? Are you a ghost? Or…"

"Not exactly," the witch shook her head "When I died, the witch Ayana preserved my body with a spell. She was a close friend of mine, an ancestor of your friend Bonnie."

"So that's why only Bonnie and her mother could open up the casket," Elena nodded.

Esther inclined her head "They complete the Bennett bloodline. I drew power from them and their ancestors who were with me on the other side."

The Doppelgänger tilted her head, not quite sure where the woman was going with this "So you've been on the other side for a thousand years?"

"Nature's way of punishing me for turning my family into vampires," the Original Witch smiled wryly "But there is a way for me to undo the evil I created."

That made Elena sit up straighter "You're going to help me kill Klaus, aren't you?"

"One thing at a time, Elena," Esther smiled pleased "For now, I simply need your help." She looked at the girl "Has anyone shared the story of my family with you? How I upset the balance of nature by turning my children into vampires?"

The Doppelgänger shook her head "How is this important?"

"I did it to protect them from the werewolves," the witch continued "But in no time at all, they began to feed on human blood. They ravaged the town with no remorse. Eventually, Niklaus turned against me."

"How are you gonna kill them though?"

Esther leaned back "It will take time, magic and your assistance."

Elena frowned "What do I have to do with it?"

"My children believe I'm holding this ball to celebrate our reunion. But in truth, I've gathered them together to perform a ritual. The first step requires blood from the doppelgänger. Only a drop. Its essence will be in the champagne toast later on this evening. Will you do it or shall I?" Esther held out a long thin knife.

The Doppelgänger looked taken aback for a moment before she reached out. Just before she touched the knife, she hesitated "What about the child? Luna."

"She is going to die as well," Esther shrugged "I cannot have my children living on through her."

"I'll do it then." Elena grabbed the knife and pulled off her glove and pricked her finger, holding out her hand for the witch.

Esther squeezed some blood into a glass chalice that was filled with liquid "As far as I know none of them is suspicious of me at this time… They must all drink the toast in order to be linked as one."

"But Luna doesn't drink alcohol," Elena tilted her head.

"I have another plan for her," the Original Witch assured "She will not be linked to all of them but to Niklaus and Niklaus alone."

A little while later, Esther stepped out to the staircase, a glass of red-tinged champagne in her hand "Good evening, Ladies and Gentleman. Waiters are coming around with champagne. I invite you all to join me in raising a glass. It provides me with no greater joy than to see my family back together as one. I'd like to thank you all for being part of this spectacular evening. Cheers." From her place, she watched her children drink the champagne and Luna take a sip of the juice that a waiter handed her.

* * *

Klaus lead Caroline and Luna to his art room. Well, Luna had been in here before but the blonde vampire hadn't been yet. Caroline looked at the paintings with wide eyes "Impressive. I take it the curators at the Louvre aren't on vervain?"

The Hybrid chuckled, lifting Luna into his arms when she reached out to touch one of the canvases "You don't touch, Luna." He turned back to Caroline "But yes, that was their mistake."

"What about these?" the Forbes questioned, gesturing to the jewellery on her arm "Where did you get these?"

"Well, that's a long story… But rest assured it was worn by a princess almost as beautiful as you," Klaus shrugged, adjusting his grip on his daughter. For some reason, it wasn't quite as awkward to talk to the blonde vampire while Luna was in the room. Okay, that sounded awkward.

Caroline rolled her eyes at how cheesy he sounded. It was then that she looked down and noticed some sketches "Wait a second… Did – did you paint these?"

"Yeah," the Hybrid nodded "I'm kind of hoping to convert Luna too… Might take her to some of the Art museums around the world when she's older. Have you been?"

"I – I haven't really been anywhere," the baby vampire admitted "My mother is always working and my dad was too busy with his new life." Luna reached out for the fellow blonde, noticing her sadness. That little motion alone made her laugh a little "Things really only changed when I started looking after Luna… That was when Elena started acting up."

The Hybrid froze "Wait, didn't you tell me that the Doppelgänger hurt… Oh, she's dead. Very, very dead."

"Daddy?" Luna asked, looking up at the man who was still holding her.

He looked down to see the five-year-old's wide eyes and groaned "That is so unfair… Stop looking at me like that."

"You're really embracing this whole father thing, aren't you?" Caroline grinned in amusement.

Klaus shrugged "Well when your brother comes running in with a tiny pup it puts things into perspective. To be honest, I'm not sure how I haven't noticed before."

The baby vampire placed her hand on his shoulder "You didn't want to believe it. There's a difference but the most important thing is that you accepted it now. Luna needs her father just like she needs Damon and Stefan. I know that I have no right to tell you what to do but consider the fact that she spent months with them…"

"I'm not taking her away," Klaus argued quietly.

"Yes, you are," Caroline pointed out "Or at least Elijah did. She's part of their family just as she's part of yours."

The Hybrid looked down at his daughter who had started playing with his necklace, looking completely and utterly bored with their conversation. She was listening though… She didn't want to lose Damon or Stefan or Rose. Not after losing her mother not that long ago… "You know, I think you're right," he mumbled "As much as I hate to admit it, they did take care of her."

* * *

Finn closed the door to his mother's study behind him. The Ball was over and he had seen Niklaus' daughter leave with the two Salvatores earlier "Are we alright to speak freely?"

"Yes," Esther nodded "The sage still burns." She pulled out the parchment she had written earlier.

"Is everything ready?"

The Original Witch looked up "Of course. The Doppelgänger was all too happy to help once I mentioned Luna." She raised her eyebrow "You do understand what this means, right? This spell I'm casting tonight will bind you all together."

"I understand," Finn nodded seriously "When it is time, I will be ready to die."

"Then we must complete the link," the witch hummed. While she knew that Finn was loyal to her, there was also a chance that he wouldn't die for her cause. If all fails, she would link the Doppelgänger's life to them as well. Should everything go wrong, she could just kill Elena.


	28. Original Witch

When Elena entered the Grill she noticed Caroline almost immediately. Not that the blonde was hard to miss, especially not with the company she had been keeping recently "Caroline," the Doppelgänger called out, hurrying over to the young vampire.

The Forbes turned around, trying not to show the distaste she was feeling. Elena had turned from bad to worse recently and Caroline didn't like it "What is it?"

"Did you know that the kid you're protecting so fiercely is Klaus' child?" Elena questioned, misinterpreting Caroline's look of shock "I just found out and I couldn't believe it." Here her tone took on a sugary sweetness "Are you okay? I mean, it can't be easy to get lied to like this. I know how you feel."

"How did you find out?" the blonde vampire demanded, thoroughly pissed at what she was hearing. How dare she…?

Elena reached out to place her hand on Caroline's "Bonnie found out and told me. Hey, where are you going?"

"To the Boarding House," Caroline shot back "By the way, I already knew that Luna is Klaus' daughter. It's not exactly hard to guess once you see them both. I've known for a while, so don't presume that you're going to turn me against my friends. They have been there for me when I needed them. Unlike you." With that, the blonde whirled around, storming out of the door angrily.

The Doppelgänger stared after her in shock and anger before falling into a booth with a huff. How could Caroline talk to her like that? And keep something like this from her? She stared at her hands, lost in thought about the way her friendship with the Sheriff's daughter ended.

"Elena?" Bonnie frowned, coming to a stop next to her best friend. She sat down across from the Doppelgänger, causing the other girl to startled "What happened?"

"I told Caroline about Luna, Bonnie," Elena mumbled "She already knew."

The Bennett witch blinked "And she didn't say anything to either of us?"

"Apparently," the brunette shrugged before running a hand over her forehead "Now that you're here… I went to the Ball yesterday to meet with Esther."

Bonnie nodded "You told me that, yes. What did she want?"

"My blood," Elena pointed out "She used my blood to link her children together. If everything works the way she said it would, the Originals will be dead after the full moon. And so will Luna."

"That's incredible," Bonnie breathed "Do you know how she's going to do it?"

The Doppelgänger shook her head "Not really. I guess it has something to do with the oldest… Finn. He seemed to know what's going on."

While the two girls were discussing the plan, they didn't notice the man behind them, listening to every word they were saying. Alaric was in shock. He knew that Elena was turning selfish but to take part in something like this? The teacher couldn't believe that he protected the girl from Rebekah's wrath. Maybe he should have just told Jenna to wait until the Original was awake… But it was too late now. The only thing he could do now was to make sure that Luna survived. The girl was so young and certainly didn't deserve what happened to her already. Alaric didn't hate the Originals either. Sure, Klaus could be a bastard and Elijah as well but that didn't mean that he couldn't like or trust them to some extent. Despite their reputation, the Mikaelsons had turned out relatively nice and they were family to Luna which made them friend candidates at the very least.

* * *

"Ric?" Damon asked as soon as he answered his phone "What's up?"

He heard shuffling on the other end of the line and a door closing " _Listen, I'm at the Grill and… I heard something. Can you contact the Mikaelsons without their mother noticing?_ "

"I – I think so," the older Salvatore nodded, exchanging a confused look with Stefan and Rose. His younger brother had pulled out his phone, ready to text Rebekah once they knew what was going on "What's wrong?"

" _Elena and Bonnie were talking about the Ball last night and how Elena went to meet Esther,_ " Alaric explained, trying to think of a way to tell them what he heard without anyone freaking out… As if that's going to happen " _Esther linked all the Originals together. She's planning on killing them on the full moon… Isn't that tonight?_ "

Damon inhaled sharply "What? How?"

" _That's not all. Luna is linked to them as well. I don't know why but apparently, Esther wants to eradicate her entire family line. Elena said that this… Finn guy knows what's going on but I'm not sure._ _Bonnie and her mother are helping too…_ _I just thought I'd tell you,"_ Alaric explained hurriedly, looking around to make sure that no one was listening to his conversation.

"Luna is…" the older Salvatore trailed off, shaking his head harshly "Never mind. Thanks, Ric. Stefan just texted Rebekah. We'll… we'll get this over with… somehow."

" _Sorry that I don't have better news,_ " the teacher murmured.

"No, no," Damon shook his head "I'm glad that you called. I have to go. They're on the way."

" _Good luck, Damon,_ " Alaric said, hanging up the phone. He would have to go and talk to Jenna about all of this. The other woman had gotten close to Luna as well – like most people around the child.

* * *

At the Mikaelson Mansion, Elijah was walking around in his mother's study. He froze when he saw the burnt sage that Esther used last night. This was going to turn into a problem…

"Stefan just texted," Rebekah announced downstairs, looking at her phone.

Kol looked up from the grimoire he had been looking into "Alright? And why do I care?"

"Oh, God," the blonde gasped "Nik…"

"What's wrong?" the Hybrid tilted his head at her tone. His sister was dramatic but for her to act like this, there had to be something seriously wrong. He got up and took the phone his sister was holding out to him "I'm going to fucking kill her."

Kol blinked at his older brother "Anyone want to fill me in?"

"I would like to know what this is about as well," Elijah spoke up, walking into the room, holding up the sage "I assume it has to do with this?"

Rebekah had tears in her eyes, still staring at her phone "Mother wants to kill us. She linked us together…"

"How?" Kol tilted his head with a frown.

"Something to do with the Doppelgänger," the female Original shrugged and startled lightly when her phone dinged again "No, no, no…"

Klaus looked over her shoulder and hissed angrily. With one swift move, he hit his hand through the wall behind him "I could have forgiven her for linking us… But bringing Luna into this? She's dead."

"I believe we should take this somewhere else," Elijah murmured "Mother and Finn might not be here but I think we're safer at the Boarding House."

"Finn is in on it, isn't he?" Rebekah questioned "He's helping mother to kill us?"

The oldest Original in the room nodded thoughtfully "He hates what we are, always has."

"Let's get to the Boarding House and find a way to take care of this," Klaus spoke up "I want to see Luna." By the time they reached the Boarding House, his anger had tripled and Klaus was barely keeping it together. How could his mother do this? He wasn't even angry for himself, he was furious because she wanted to kill a five-year-old just because she was his daughter. Who would do such a thing? Well, his mother apparently.

"Good, you're here," Damon greeted when he pulled the door open "The others are in the living room. I'm going to check on Luna."

The Hybrid frowned "What's wrong with her?"

"She was still asleep half an hour ago," the older Salvatore shrugged "I don't know. You're welcome to go and check on her if you want to."

"You don't mind?" Klaus asked.

Damon shook his head "You're her father." He gestured to the stairs "Upstairs. Third door to the right." As soon as he stopped talking, the Hybrid was already gone.

"Thank you," Elijah murmured as he walked past "It does mean a lot to him."

"He is her father. After everything that happened in the last year…" Damon sighed, running his hand through his hair "Well, let's say I'm happy as long as she's happy." Rose wrapped her arms around his waist when he sat down on the sofa next to her.

Rebekah sat down on the arm of the chair Stefan was sitting on and leaned against his shoulder lightly while Kol and Elijah sat down as well "Tell us what you know."

Damon and Stefan exchanged a look and launched into what they knew. It wasn't a lot but then again, Ric hadn't heard everything that was going to happen. They told the Mikaelsons everything about Elena and Bonnie and the fact that the Bennetts were going to help with Esther's plan. During their story, Klaus came downstairs with Luna in his arms. The five-year-old was extremely pale and still half-asleep, not even reacting to the other people in the room "Damon, Stefan, could the two of you take care of the Bennett witches?"

"If we know where they are, sure," Damon shrugged, throwing Luna a worried look "What about Luna?"

Rebekah raised her hand "I'll stay with her. Rose? Are you staying too?"

"Yes," the other female vampire nodded "We were going to watch some movies today anyway. You're welcome to join."

"I think I just might," the blonde Original smiled.

Elijah ran a hand through his hair "There is one place where they could be."

Damon hummed "I take it you're talking about the Old Witch House."

"How do we know that they're going to be there?" Stefan tilted his head.

"We don't," Elijah shook his head "But it's the only place I can think of at the moment. If they're not there then we have little time to find them… "

* * *

Finn was looking out into the woods "They're coming, mother," he announced, tilting his head to the side.

"No," Esther breathed "It's too soon…" She waved to the two Bennetts who were standing outside of the pentagram "Go. Quickly." Bonnie and her mother retreated into the house as Kol, Klaus and Elijah walked up to their mother and older brother "My sons, come forward."

Finn held out his arm "Stay beside me, mother."

"It's okay," the Original Witch murmured, walking into the pentagram "They can't enter."

Kol approached the pentagram with a scowl on his face, stumbling back when the torches flared up bright "That's lovely," he spat "We're stuck out here while the favourite son plays sacrificial lamb. How pathetic you are, Finn."

"Be quiet, Kol," their mother exclaimed "Your brother knows virtue you cannot even imagine."

"What? I can't imagine killing an innocent child?" Kol hissed "Killing us is a different story but what has Luna ever done to you?"

Esther narrowed her eyes "That girl is an abomination. She should not exist."

"Don't talk about her like that," Klaus sneered "She has nothing to do with this."

Elijah placed his hand on his brothers' arms "Whatever you think of us, killing your own family will be an atrocity."

"My only regret is that I did not let you die a thousand years ago," the older woman spat "For a thousand years, I've been forced to watch you… Felt the pain of every victim, suffered while you shed blood. Even you, Elijah, with your claim of nobility, you're not better. All of you. You're a curse on this Earth and that child will be as well. She might not have killed yet but it's only a matter of time before she becomes a monster like all of you. If you've come to plead for your life, you've wasted your time."

While the Mikaelsons were stalling their mother, Damon and Stefan were speeding into the Witch House, trying to get this over with. Damon leaned over to his brother "You go and turn Bonnie's mother. I'll take care of the little witch bitch."

"Are you going to kill her?" Stefan mumbled.

"It's not as if she doesn't deserve it," the older of the brothers shrugged "Why? You gonna stop me?"

Stefan held up his hands "Just wanted to make sure. It would probably be more of a punishment if you turn her too."

"Huh," Damon blinked "I like the way you think. Let's get turning then." The younger Salvatore blurred to turn the older witch, while Damon ran downstairs, throwing Bonnie across the room "Hello, Bonnie."

The young witch narrowed her eyes "What do you want?"

"Me? Oh, I'm going to stop you," Damon shrugged "We can do this the easy way or the hard way."

Bonnie smirked "What are you gonna do? Kill me? Go ahead then." She knew that it wouldn't change anything if the vampire killed her. Esther would still be able to channel the witches in her ancestry.

"Nope," the raven-haired vampire shook his head, stalking closer to the downed witch "I never said anything about killing you or mommy dearest. Have fun without your magic, Bonnie."

"No, no, no," the girl shook her head, trying to use her magic on Damon but the vampire was faster. Within the blink of an eye, he had his wrist pressed against her mouth before snapping her neck.

Outside, Esther gasped, pressing her hand to her chest "No… Sisters, do not abandon me."

"Mother," Finn exclaimed, grabbing the older woman's arm. The torches flared up, causing the three Originals outside of the pentagram to step back. After a moment, the flames died down with Finn and Esther gone.

* * *

At the Boarding House, Luna was curled up on the bed in Damon's room with Rebekah and Rose, watching some Disney movies. Over the next two hours, Luna started feeling worse. She couldn't hold in the whimper that threatened to escape her.

"Luna?" Rose frowned, reaching out to the girl carefully "What's wrong?"

Luna closed her eyes tightly and swallowed heavily. Her head was throbbing and her stomach hurt too. It felt as if she had swallowed bricks "Hurts…"

Rebekah grabbed Luna's hand with the other tilted her niece's head up, so she could look into her eyes "This is bad. This is very bad."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, guys. This part of the story is almost done. I just wanted to tell you a little more about what I have planned when I continue it.
> 
> The main sequel is going to be a Twilight Crossover.
> 
> The other ideas were other story ideas that go AU after this first part and ignore the main sequel. These are Inuyasha (Sesshomaru/Luna), Grimm (Monroe/Luna), Doctor Who (either Doctor/Luna or Gen), Harry Potter (Draco/Luna) Jurassic World (maybe Zach/Luna), Once Upon a Time (Peter Pan/Luna), Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (Wonka/Luna) and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (Gen). There are more but these are the ones I have already somewhat worked out. I'm not sure when or if I'll do them but I wanted you to know what I worked out, so you can tell me what you think.
> 
> Nick


	29. Sickness

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, I feel really bad... There's been a lot of family drama and I didn't have time to write anything, so here you go.
> 
> That's why I give you the chapter to Lost Descendant as well as this one. Sorry about the wait.
> 
> Enjoy,
> 
> Nick

 

"Luna?" Damon frowned, shaking the sleeping girl's shoulder. She had been asleep for almost twenty-four hours now since he and Stefan had gotten back last night. His hand pulled back and a second later, he was feeling the little one's forehead "Luna… I need you to open your eyes," he urged, feeling the sheer temperature the five-year-old's skin was radiating "Can you do that for me?" When she still didn't move, the vampire smoothed a hand over his hair. What was he supposed to do now? How was it even possible that Luna was sick? She was part vampire and part werewolf. Shouldn't she be immune like the rest of them?

Rose stuck her head into the room "She still sleeping?"

"She's burning up, Rose," Damon murmured "I don't know what to do…"

"I'm going to get a glass of blood," the older vampire said "Maybe it helps… If not I think you should bring her to the Mikaelson Mansion."

Damon nodded lightly "Yeah. Maybe that helps… Do you think this has to do with her being linked to the others?"

"I don't think so," Rose shrugged "I mean, Klaus didn't get sick, did he? She's basically a Hybrid as well."

"I know. That's why I don't know what to do," the Salvatore whispered, pulling the girl into his lap "Go and get her some blood."

Rose nodded, running off to the basement to grab a blood bag from the cooler before quickly fetching a glass from the kitchen as well. The two vampires fed Luna the bag in hopes it would do something, that she would feel better with the blood in her system. When the little girl's state didn't change, Damon quickly scooped her up after wrapping a blanket around her small form before running out of the door and towards the Mikaelson Mansion.

Just before he reached the driveway, Luna spasmed in his arms and started throwing up blood. Damon shifted her, so she wouldn't choke and hurried the rest of the way to the front door. Stefan and Rose were behind him but before they could do anything like ring the doorbell or knock, Damon took initiative "Come on, come on," he mumbled, kicking the door in with his foot while glancing down at Luna with concern.

"What are you doing?" Kol hissed, storming to the front door. He had been looking through his grimoires and everything he knew about magic to find a way to unlink them while Klaus and Rebekah were out to find Finn and bring him back.

Damon looked up at the Original "We need your help… Something's wrong with Luna."

Kol's eyes trailed down to the bundle in the younger vampire's arms and gasped at the sight of his unconscious niece covered in blood "What the hell happened?" He stepped to the side, ushering Damon into the house "Elijah."

"She's been out since last night and then she got a fever," the older of the two Salvatore brothers explained when Elijah walked into the room, looking at the dishevelled group "We gave her some blood earlier but she just threw it all back up."

"That's not right," Kol mumbled, feeling the girl's temperature "I don't know what could cause this either. The link wouldn't…" He stood up and shook his head "I'm gonna do some more research. Elijah?"

The older Mikaelson brother nodded "It's fine, Kol. I'll stay down here and call the Martins. They should get here by tonight or tomorrow depending on where they are."

* * *

Finn was walking down the street, his mind on his mother's plan. The more time he had to think about it, the more he worried. Was he doing the right thing? He didn't care about his life or the lives of his siblings but his mother was trying to kill a child. It shouldn't have mattered who the parents are. A child is still a child. Right? A small voice in the back of his head demanded to know what he was doing. The world had a lot to offer and the world had changed so much. Why would he throw all of that away because his mother asked it of him?

"Hello, Finn," Klaus spoke up, catching up to his oldest brother from behind.

The older Original startled lightly, not having noticed the Hybrid before "Niklaus. I have nothing to say to you."

Klaus raised his eyebrow "Well, I'm not here to chat. I will ask you one time though, where is our mother?"

"I do not know," Finn shook his head "She disappeared just after we left."

It was then that Klaus' phone started ringing. The Hybrid blinked in confusion and looked down at his phone "Elijah?"

" _You need to come back right away,_ " Elijah said, barely waiting for the greeting after his call was answered " _Luna is sick. Kol is trying to find out what's going on but from the way he's cursing, I don't believe he's having any luck."_

Finn tilted his head, listening to what his brother had to say and frowned at the worry on Klaus' face. He had no idea that his easily angered brother could care this much about a girl who turned out to be his daughter "What do you mean 'sick'?" Klaus questioned.

" _Not now. I'll tell you once you're back,_ " Elijah shook his head, looking down at the five-year-old who looked ready to throw up again " _I have to go._ "

"Elijah," Klaus called out before cursing under his breath when the dial tone sounded.

Finn licked his lips nervously "Are you alright?"

"Why do you care?" the Hybrid snapped at his oldest brother, his mind straying from the reason he came here in the first place to his daughter.

"I never wanted this," the oldest Original admitted quietly.

Klaus scoffed "You were trying to kill us all, Finn." He was about to say something else when he shook his head "No matter. I don't care. Are you going to come with me willingly to get unlinked or do you want me to drag you back kicking and screaming?"

"What's going on?" Rebekah cut in, walking up to her brothers. She had stayed back for a bit in case of having to stop Finn from running.

"I'm waiting, Finn," Klaus pointed out, staring at his oldest brother without blinking.

Finn looked at his younger siblings before he nodded "I'll come. But not for you."

"Then why?" Rebekah raised her eyebrow in confusion.

"Does it matter? Let's go," the Hybrid rolled his eyes, shoving Finn to walk in front of him before stalking off towards the car.

The female Original frowned "What crawled up your ass?"

"Elijah called. He wouldn't tell me what's wrong with Luna… Just that she's sick," he told his sister.

"How can she be sick?" Rebekah asked. Luna was part vampire after all and she couldn't see how she could get sick at all. It wasn't normal, that was for sure.

Klaus shook his head "I don't know."

* * *

It was an hour after the Salvatores and Rose had stormed into the Mikaelson Mansion with Luna and they were no closer to finding out what was wrong with her. By now, Elijah had called the Martins who had promised that they would be there within the day. Apparently, the family had settled down in Baltimore which thankfully wasn't as far away as the Original had feared.

"Dammit," Kol cursed, swiping the grimoire off the table "This is pointless."

"Calm down, Kol," Elijah murmured, holding a wet rag to his niece's burning face, watching Damon pace on the other side of the room with Rose trying to calm him down while barely faring any better. The younger vampire had barely said a word since he explained the situation and he didn't seem inclined to do so any time soon. Stefan had left a little while ago to grab the journals they had gotten from Maria, telling Kol that they might hold some answers in them "Getting angry won't help with the situation."

The younger of the Originals shook his head harshly "You don't understand. Hell, I don't understand it. Nothing to do with mother's spell should have brought that reaction in her. Luna is getting worse by the hour and I have no idea what is happening."

"You can't know everything, brother," Elijah shrugged but internally he was raging. There was no way he could lose his niece. Not so soon after his siblings had been reunited. There had to be something they could do… "I'm sure it will become clear soon."

"Yeah?" Kol muttered "And when? After she dies? Because like it or not. This is the way we're heading in at the moment."

Before the oldest vampire in the room could reply, they heard footsteps coming closer "Damon?" a female voice called hesitatingly.

The Salvatore's head snapped around and he blinked at the woman who appeared in the doorway "Sage? How… Why are you here?"

"Your brother said you were here," the red-haired woman shrugged lightly, gesturing to Stefan who had his hands full of small notebooks that he sat down next to Kol "I thought it would be nice to see you again."

Damon raised his eyebrow "You heard about the Originals being undaggered, didn't you?" Back when Sage had taught him about being a vampire, she had told him of her love. The person that she had wanted to spend eternity with, only to have him ripped away from her. For the longest time, Damon thought that he died but after he met the other Originals – the oldest, Finn, specifically – he knew what she really meant. Actually, the older Salvatore brother had debated on whether to call his old teacher to let her know that Finn was around but then with everything happening, he had completely forgotten.

"I might have," Sage smiled lightly, nodding her head at the two Originals in the room "Elijah, Kol… It is nice to see you again."

Elijah looked from his oldest brother's girl to Damon and back "You know each other?" Kol barely glanced up from the mess of paper in front of him and the journal he grabbed before going back to studying everything he had. It was not possible that he couldn't find at least one reason why the child was this sick.

"Sage taught me what I know," Damon told the Original, throwing his arm around the redhead's shoulders "I was thinking about contacting her but then Luna… Well…"

As soon as he trailed off, Sage's eyes caught the little girl who had started whimpering in her sleep "Who is that?" she frowned. The kid looked familiar – really familiar – but the vampire couldn't quite place her.

"She's my niece," Damon explained "Also… she's Klaus' daughter."

"That's impossible," Sage huffed "But then again… He has never done things by halves." Her mind had wandered back to the moment the Hybrid had taken her Finn from her and if she had been a lesser person, she might have used that little girl as revenge. But Sage had a long time to come to terms with what happened and while she didn't necessarily like it, she understood to some extent. That didn't mean that she couldn't at least try to stake Niklaus, even if it would serve no purpose at all.

Elijah let out a small snort "Indeed."

Sage looked around "Where is he anyway? I would have expected him to be here if his daughter is sick? Or Rebekah at the very least."

"They're out to get Finn," Kol spoke up absentmindedly.

"Get Finn? Why?"

Kol glared at the woman in front of him "Because that bastard teamed up with our mother to get us all killed."

Sage's eyes widened "What?"

"Yes. Not so… saintly now, is he?" the younger Mikaelson snapped back.

Elijah rolled his eyes "Enough, Kol. This isn't helping."

The red-haired woman sank down in an armchair across from the couch Luna and Elijah were on "Why would he help your mother?" Sage puzzled. From what Finn had told her, he didn't like his mother very much at all. Not after what she did to them. It was honestly surprising for Sage to hear that he would help his mother with something.

Elijah looked at the bowl with the water in and frowned "Could you put some more cold water in this, Damon?"

"Sure," the raven-haired vampire nodded, grabbing the bowl to take it to the kitchen to put some more cold water in it. He felt really useless in this whole situation and he would be damned if he didn't do everything he could to help.

It took another hour until Klaus shoved Finn into the living room where the oldest Mikaelson fell to the floor. Before he could get up, Klaus was already kneeling next to the couch, carefully reaching out to Luna "What's wrong with her, Elijah?"

"We don't know," the noble Original shook his head "But she's getting worse."

Klaus closed his eyes for a moment before letting out a shaky breath, whirling around to face Finn "What. Did. Mother. Do?"

"Nothing that should have done that," he pointed out, his eyes never straying from the unconscious girl. Finn had noticed that Sage was in the room but she would be there once he told his siblings what he knew "I –"

He was cut off by Elijah's phone ringing. The second oldest carefully slid out from under Luna and walked out of the room. As soon as he was gone, Finn hesitatingly stepped closer to the five-year-old on the couch. He froze for a moment when Klaus hissed at him to stay away but ultimately ignored his brother's attempts to stop him. Finn reached out his hand, trailing his fingers down the girl's face "I didn't want this…"

"Then why did you help mother?" the Hybrid snapped.

Finn looked up, his eyes unfocused "I don't know… I – I really don't."

"Do you care for your siblings so little that you want to kill them?" Damon questioned, tilting his head. He was tense and more than ready to hurt the Original should he make one wrong move.

"No," Finn snapped before shaking his head "No. I – I thought I was doing the right thing."

Sage tilted her head, leaning against the couch where he was sitting by Luna "What changed your mind?"

"When mother went after her," the oldest Original gestured to the five-year-old "She obsessed over killing her. It really only hit after I was away from her. To be completely truthful, I don't even remember why I helped her at all."

Klaus raised his eyebrows and crossed his arms "And why should we believe that?"

"No matter what you think about me, I would never hurt a child. Even if it is yours," Finn explained, running his hand through the long blonde hair.

"Oh, God," Kol gasped from where he was still sitting. In front of him was the journal he had gotten from the two Salvatore brothers. The journal that belonged to Luna's mother. There is no way… Why hadn't he thought of that before? "I'm so stupid…"

"Kol?"

The youngest male Original huffed a small laugh "I just found out what's wrong with Luna."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, guys. Thank you for the Reviews to the last chapter. I might write some of the sequels if I get inspired. and some might only be One Shots...
> 
> Anyway. I just wanted to tell you more about how it goes on from here. I thought about doing an OS or a Two-Shot that shows Marcel and Davina joining their family (maybe) and then there's the Twilight Sequel with Jasper/Luna pairing. This is the MAIN sequel and the one I had planned from the beginning. I'm not sure how long that one will be but it might not be too long, depending on the plot I can think of. We'll just have to see. If there's something specific you want to see in the Twilight sequel then please let me know.
> 
> Nick


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